Department of Health and Social Care

Community Nurses

Karin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many care contacts were carried out by district nurses in each of the last 10 years.

Helen Whately: The Department does not hold this information.

Domestic Accidents: Older People

Karin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many emergency hospital admissions there have been following falls by patients aged 65 and over in each financial year since 2010-11.

Helen Whately: NHS England publishes information on finished consultant episodes (FCEs) for admitted patients, which is available at the following link:https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/hospital-admitted-patient-care-activityThe following table shows the total number of FCEs relating to a fall, where the patient was 65 years old or over, each year from 2012/13, the earliest year from which data is available, to 2022/23:YearFCEs relating to a fall2012/13283,7942013/14290,3812014/15304,0492015/16312,4762016/17316,6472017/18334,9862018/19345,4942019/20360,6772020/21334,4182021/22350,5452022/23339,928

Health Services: Homelessness

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to NICE guidance entitled Integrated health and social care for people experiencing homelessness, published on 16 March 2022, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that people experiencing homelessness have somewhere safe and secure to recover when discharged from hospital.

Helen Whately: The Department is committed to promoting safe and timely discharge for people experiencing, or at risk of, homelessness, to appropriate accommodation.We have ensured every acute hospital has access to a care transfer hub to manage discharge for people with more complex needs. In January 2024, the Department published guidance on discharging people at risk of or experiencing homelessness, to support staff involved in planning safe and supportive discharge of these patients from hospital. The guidance is available at the following link:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/discharging-people-at-risk-of-or-experiencing-homelessness/discharging-people-at-risk-of-or-experiencing-homelessness

Naloxone

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the contract awarded by her Department to Ethypharm UK Ltd on 27 January 2022 for the storage and management of the Department's Naloxone buffer stock, how many packs of Naloxone were distributed from the buffer stock for use by patients in the UK in the (a) 2021-22, (b) 2022-23, and (c) 2023-24 financial year.

Andrea Leadsom: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Community Nurses: Staff

Karin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of capacity in district nursing on the timeliness of patient discharge from hospital in 2023.

Helen Whately: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Contraception: Vulnerable Adults and Young People

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to help ensure that (a) young and (b) vulnerable people have access to free contraception.

Andrea Leadsom: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the independent report by Carlo Breen into the Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust’s historic management of concerns in relation to a Consultant Spinal Surgeon, published on 7 March 2024.

Maria Caulfield: The Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust commissioned the Spinal Patient Safety Look Back review in 2021. A report detailing the findings was published in July 2023. A second report was commissioned by the trust to review the historic management of concerns raised in relation to a particular surgeon. The findings of this report were published on 7 March 2024, and relate to issues that include bullying, speaking up, the duty of candour, governance, and the quality of disciplinary investigations at the trust.The Government is already taking action in relation to policies relevant to the report’s findings. This includes strengthening leadership, the statutory duty of candour, and speaking up to promote an open and transparent learning culture in the National Health Service. We also expect NHS organisations to have robust policies in place to tackle bullying and harassment.

Sodium Valproate: Compensation

Siobhan Baillie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what her Department's timescales are for responding to The Hughes Report, published by the Patient Safety Commissioner on 7 February 2024.

Siobhan Baillie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to The Hughes Report, published by the Patient Safety Commissioner on 7 February 2024, if she will ensure that people impacted by bowel mesh are eligible for financial redress.

Maria Caulfield: The Government commissioned the Patient Safety Commissioner (PSC) to produce a report on redress for those affected by sodium valproate and pelvic mesh. We are grateful to the PSC and her team for completing this report, and our sympathies remain with those affected by sodium valproate and pelvic mesh. The Government is now carefully considering the PSC’s recommendations and will respond substantively in due course. Bowel mesh, also known as rectopexy mesh, did not fall within the definition of pelvic organ prolapse that the PSC investigated for her report.

Perinatal Mortality: Ethnic Groups

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to paragraph 4.2 of the report entitled A comparison of the care of Asian and White women who have experienced a stillbirth or neonatal death, published by the MBRRACE-UK Perinatal Confidential Enquiry on 14 December 2023, whether her Department has had discussions with NHS England on taking steps to improve how ethnicity data is recorded.

Maria Caulfield: The Department has regular and ongoing discussions with NHS England, and other relevant bodies, on improving neonatal and maternity data quality. This includes discussions on how to improve the recording of ethnicity data. NHS Equity and Equality Guidance, produced as part of NHS England’s three-year delivery plan for maternity and neonatal services, includes ethnic coding data completeness to better understand local populations and their health outcomes. Ethnic coding data completeness has improved year on year, from 85% in 2019 to 93% in 2022.

Diabetes: Eating Disorders

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to NHS England's web page entitled Diabetes treatment and care programme, whether all eight Type 1 diabetes and disordered eating pilots have been commissioned by their Integrated Care Systems to secure services independently of NHS England pilot scheme funding.

Andrew Stephenson: The national approach to funding the establishment of Type 1 Diabetes with Disordered Eating services was delivered in two phases. Initial sites in London, Hampshire, and Dorset received national funding between 2018/19 and 2021/22, before the transition of commissioning responsibility to local systems commenced from April 2023. All three of these services did initially secure local funding, independent of the national pilot scheme. More recently, we understand that the status of these sites to be as follows: London services are partially active across London, with local consideration of ongoing funding and delivery arrangements underway; Hampshire services are active and embedded in wider eating disorder specialist services; and Dorset services have been discontinued. The remaining five newer services have been funded from September 2022, and are nationally funded up to March 2025.

Ezetimibe: Shortages

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions she has had with relevant stakeholders on tackling shortages of Ezetimibe.

Andrew Stephenson: The Department is aware of supply issues affecting several Ezetimibe suppliers. We are engaging with these suppliers to address the issues, and are working with alternative suppliers to ensure supplies remain available.The medicine supply chain is highly regulated, complex, and global. Supply disruption is an issue which affects the United Kingdom, as well as other countries around the world. There can be a variety of causes, including manufacturing issues, problems with access to raw ingredients, and sudden spikes in demand. Whilst we can’t always prevent supply issues, the Department has well-established tools and processes to manage them, in order to mitigate risks to patients. We work closely with the pharmaceutical industry, NHS England, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, and others operating in the supply chain to help ensure patients continue to have access to suitable medicines when supply is disrupted.

Atorvastatin: Shortages

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions she has had with stakeholders on tackling shortages of atorvastatin.

Andrew Stephenson: There have been supply issues with atorvastatin, but as a result of our work to manage those issues, including engaging with alternative suppliers to cover supply gaps in order to meet demand, they have now been resolved. The medicine supply chain is highly regulated, complex, and global. Supply disruption is an issue which affects the United Kingdom, as well as other countries around the world. There can be a variety of causes, including manufacturing issues, problems with access to raw ingredients, and sudden spikes in demand. Whilst we can’t always prevent supply issues, the Department has well-established tools and processes to manage them, in order to mitigate risks to patients. We work closely with the pharmaceutical industry, NHS England, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, and others operating in the supply chain to help ensure patients continue to have access to suitable medicines when supply is disrupted.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: Diagnosis

Ellie Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to help reduce (a) assessment and (b) diagnosis waiting times for ADHD.

Maria Caulfield: It is the responsibility of integrated care boards to make appropriate provision available, to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including access to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) assessments, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines. The NICE’s guidelines for ADHD diagnosis and management aim to improve the diagnosis of ADHD, as well as the quality of care and support people receive. The NICE’s guidelines do not recommend a maximum waiting time standard for ADHD diagnosis, either from referral for an assessment to receiving an assessment, a diagnosis, or a first contact appointment.There is, at present, no single, established dataset that can be used to monitor waiting times for the assessment or treatment for ADHD nationally. The Department is exploring options to improve data collection and reporting on ADHD assessment waiting times, to help improve access to ADHD assessments in a timely way and in line with the NICE’s guideline. In support of this, the National Institute for Health and Care Research’s Policy Research Programme has commissioned a research project to provide insights into local ADHD diagnosis waiting time data collection.NHS England is establishing a new ADHD taskforce alongside the Government, to improve care for people living with the condition. The new taskforce will bring together expertise from across a broad range of sectors, including the National Health Service, education, and justice, to better understand the challenges affecting people with ADHD, and help provide a joined up approach in response to concerns around rising demand for assessments and support.Alongside the work of the taskforce, NHS England has announced that it will continue to work with stakeholders to develop a national ADHD data improvement plan, carry out more detailed work to understand the provider and commissioning landscape, and capture examples from local health systems who are trialling innovative ways of delivering ADHD services, to ensure best practice is captured and shared across the system.

Etoricoxib: Shortages

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions she has had with relevant stakeholders on tackling shortages of Etoricoxib.

Andrew Stephenson: The Department is aware that a supplier of etoricoxib 60 milligram tablets is experiencing a supply issue. We have been working with that supplier to address the issue, and resupply is expected in early May 2024. We have worked with alternative suppliers to ensure they can cover the gap in the market in the meantime.The medicine supply chain is highly regulated, complex, and global. Supply disruption is an issue which affects the United Kingdom, as well as other countries around the world. There can be a variety of causes, including manufacturing issues, problems with access to raw ingredients, and sudden spikes in demand.Whilst we can’t always prevent supply issues, the Department has well-established tools and processes to manage them, in order to mitigate risks to patients. We work closely with the pharmaceutical industry, NHS England, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, and others operating in the supply chain to help ensure patients continue to have access to suitable medicines when supply is disrupted.

Midwives: Wellingborough

Gen Kitchen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to support the recruitment and retention of midwives in Wellingborough constituency.

Maria Caulfield: We are investing an additional £186 million a year to improve maternity and neonatal care and grow the workforce. On top of this, the Government and NHS England are investing nearly £35 million over three years, from 2024/25 to 2026/27, to further improve maternity safety across England, with specialist training for staff, additional numbers of midwives, and support to ensure maternity services listen to, and act on, women’s experiences to improve care. As announced at the Spring Budget, we are further increasing the number of midwives by funding an additional 160 new posts over three years, to support the continued growth of the maternity and neonatal workforce.On retention, the NHS Long Term Workforce Plan sets out how to improve culture and leadership to ensure that up to 130,000 fewer staff leave the National Health Service over the next 15 years. This includes: implementing actions from the NHS People Plan that have been shown to be successful; implementing plans to improve flexible opportunities for prospective retirees, and delivering the actions needed to modernise the NHS pension scheme; and committing to ongoing national funding for continuing professional development for nurses, midwives, and allied health professionals, so NHS staff are supported to meet their full potential. These measures apply across the country, including for midwives in the Wellingborough constituency.

Mental Health Services: Children

Bell Ribeiro-Addy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to ensure that seriously ill children and their families can access information on how to access emotional and psychological support.

Maria Caulfield: The clinical team responsible for a seriously ill child’s physical healthcare should discuss and review their emotional and psychological status regularly with them, or their family, and support them with access to information and services for their mental health if needed. Commissioners are encouraged to ensure local pathways include assessment and ongoing support of patients’ mental and psychological wellbeing and cognitive status.The Health and Care Act 2022 placed a legal duty on integrated care boards (ICBs) to commission palliative and end of life care services, which meet the needs of their whole population. To support ICBs in this, NHS England has published statutory guidance, along with service specifications for children and young people, which make reference to including a holistic approach to care. This includes links to social prescribing, assessing, and addressing the needs of children, young people and families, and clear referral pathways to other services such as children and young people’s mental health services. The statutory guidance and the service specifications for children and young people are available respectively at the following links:https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/palliative-and-end-of-life-care-statutory-guidance-for-integrated-care-boards-icbs/https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/service-specifications-for-palliative-and-end-of-life-care-children-and-young-people-cyp/Patients’ family members who feel they need emotional and psychological support should speak to their general practice, or can self-refer to NHS Talking Therapies online. Details are available on the NHS website.

Mental Health Services: Suffolk

Dr Thérèse Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her Department is taking to improve access to mental health services in Suffolk Coastal constituency.

Maria Caulfield: The National Health Service forecasts that, between 2018/19 and 2023/24, spending on mental health services has increased by £4.7 billion in cash terms, compared to the target of £3.4 billion set out at the time of the NHS Long Term Plan. All integrated care boards are also on track to meet the Mental Health Investment Standard in 2023/24.Almost £16 billion was invested in mental health in 2022/23, enabling over 3.5 million people, including in the Suffolk Coastal constituency, to be in contact with mental health services, a 10% increase on the previous year.

Health Services

Karin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate she has made of the number and proportion of NHS providers that have adopted two stage shared decision-making across all admitted pathways.

Andrew Stephenson: In May 2023, NHS England published guidance setting out five core perioperative care requirements relating to the care of adult patients awaiting planned inpatient surgery. One of these requirements is that patients must be involved in shared decision making regarding admitted pathways. NHS England does not collect data on the number of National Health Service providers that have adopted two stage shared decision making across all admitted pathways. NHS England’s published guidance is available at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/earlier-screening-risk-assessment-and-health-optimisation-in-perioperative-pathways/#2-five-core-requirements-for-providers

Pharmacy: Finance

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the medication reimbursement mechanism for community pharmacists.

Dame Caroline Dinenage: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of medication costs on community pharmacies.

Andrew Stephenson: Through the medicine margin survey, the Department assesses whether the reimbursement arrangements pay pharmacy contractors as agreed as part of the community pharmacy contractual framework (CPCF). The medicine margin survey considers what pharmacies paid for medicines by looking at their invoices compared to the amount reimbursed by the National Health Service. Where the survey finds that they have been underpaid, we increase the pharmacy contractors’ payments, and where they have been overpaid, we decrease payments.Furthermore, where pharmacies cannot purchase products at or below the Drug Tariff NHS reimbursement price, Community Pharmacy England can request that the Department reassesses the reimbursement price. If a new reimbursement price is issued, this is known as a concessionary price.

Dental Services: Finance

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if she will make an assessment of the potential impact of offering one-off payments to dentists that agree to work in under-served areas on the morale of other dentists.

Andrea Leadsom: We want to encourage all professionals to commit more of their time to National Health Service work, and to work in areas of the country with low provision of NHS dental care. That is why we are introducing Golden Hellos, as set out in our plan to reform and recover NHS dentistry. A golden hello of £20,000 will be offered per dentist, for a total of up to 240 dentists. The Golden Hellos will support practices in areas where recruitment is particularly challenging and make a real difference to those patients needing dental care.

Gender Dysphoria: Children

Neale Hanvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she plans to take to ensure that online pharmacies that provide medicines to patients in the UK adhere to the NHS clinical guideline on puberty-suppressing hormones or the treatment of children and adolescents who have gender (a) incongruence and (b) dysphoria.

Andrea Leadsom: All community pharmacists, whether working on a high street or online, have a duty of care to their patients. We would expect pharmacists to take reasonable steps to ensure that all the medicines they dispense are against legally valid prescriptions, and appropriate for the patient under the authority of the prescriber. This includes both National Health Service prescriptions and private prescriptions. Registered pharmacy professionals and premises are independently regulated by the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC), and guidance has been issued for those providing services at a distance, including online pharmacies.While pharmacists are responsible for a final clinical check, ultimately the responsibility for the product prescribed rests with the prescriber. We are looking closely at what can be done to address any loopholes in prescribing practices, including work with the GPhC to define the dispensing responsibilities of pharmacists providing private prescriptions, as recommended by the Cass Report.

Maternity Services: Labour Turnover

Ellie Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps her department is taking to improve retention rates of NHS maternity staff.

Andrew Stephenson: The NHS Long Term Workforce Plan sets out how to improve culture and leadership, to ensure that up to 130,000 fewer staff leave the National Health Service over the next 15 years. This includes: implementing actions from the NHS People Plan that have been shown to be successful; implementing plans to improve flexible opportunities for prospective retirees, and delivering the actions needed to modernise the NHS pension scheme; and committing to ongoing national funding for continuing professional development for nurses, midwives, and allied health professionals, so NHS staff are supported to meet their full potential. These measures apply across staff groups, including maternity staff.

Mental Health Services: Waiting Lists

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether her Department is taking steps to bring waiting times for mental health patients in-line with waiting times for physical health patients.

Maria Caulfield: We remain committed to achieving parity between mental and physical health services, as outlined in the parity of esteem definition set out in a letter to the Public Accounts Committee in February 2024. Given funding is important for reaching parity of esteem, we are making good progress with investment in National Health Service mental health services. Between 2018/19 and 2023/24, NHS spending on mental health has increased by £4.7 billion in cash terms, as compared to the target of £3.4 billion in cash terms set out at the time of the Long-Term Plan. For 2024/25, mental health spend is forecast to continue to grow, and will make up 9.01% of all recurrent NHS spending. In February 2022, NHS England published the outcomes of its consultation on the potential to introduce five new access and waiting time standards for mental health services, as part of its clinically led review of NHS Access Standards. These are: for an urgent referral to a community based mental health crisis service, a patient should be seen within 24 hours of referral, across all ages; for a very urgent referral to a community based mental health crisis service, a patient should be seen within four hours of referral, for all age groups; patients referred from accident and emergency should be seen face to face within one hour by a mental health liaison or children and young people’s equivalent service; children, young people and their families and carers presenting to community-based mental health services, should start to receive care within four weeks of referral; and adults and older adults presenting to community-based mental health services should start to receive help within four weeks of referral.

NHS: Complaints

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she is taking steps to ensure that people with low agency have an opportunity to raise concerns and complaints within the NHS; and what recent discussions she has had with NHS leaders on this matter.

Maria Caulfield: There is a range of support available for people who may need help when making a complaint. This includes the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS), which is available in most hospitals. The PALS offers confidential advice, support, and information to help resolve concerns or problems, as well as information about the National Health Service complaints procedure, including how to get independent help. Support is also available from the Independent Complaints Advocacy Service. Advocates can provide a range of support, such as help writing a complaint letter, and attending meetings with complainants. People can get advice from a complaints advocate at any stage of the process, so it is never too late to ask for help.

NHS: Complaints

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps is she taking to address defensive culture in the handling of NHS complaints.

Maria Caulfield: We have worked closely with the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman on their work to develop the NHS Complaint Standards, which set out how organisations providing services in the National Health Service should approach complaint handling. The standards place a strong focus on several aspects of complaint handling to avoid defensiveness, including emphasising the importance of actively listening and demonstrating a clear understanding of what the main issues are for the complainant, as well as the outcomes they seek, being thorough and fair, and identifying suitable ways to put things right for people.

NHS: Complaints

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to improve NHS England's handling of complaints made by (a) staff, (b) patients and (c) carers.

Maria Caulfield: On complaints made by patients and carers, we have worked closely with the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman on their work to develop the NHS Complaint Standards. These standards set out how National Health Service organisations that handle NHS complaints, such as NHS England, should approach complaint handling to ensure they are handled and resolved effectively.On complaints made by staff, NHS England has published information about how people can speak to NHS England’s Freedom to Speak Up Team. Whilst there is a network of over 1,000 local Freedom to Speak Up Guardians across healthcare in England to support staff in speaking up, the information published by NHS England makes it clear that staff across the NHS can speak up to NHS England about anything that gets in the way of patient care, or affects their working life. My Rt hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care speaks regularly to NHS England about its performance, responsibilities, and activity, including complaints.

Cancer: Human Papillomavirus

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to eliminate (a) cervical and (b) other cancer caused by human papillomavirus.

Maria Caulfield: The human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination, alongside routine screening, is key to protecting people against strains of HPV that can cause some cancers including cervical, anal, head and neck cancer.The NHS Cervical Screening Programme (CSP) provides all women and people with a cervix between the ages of 25 and 64 years old with the opportunity to be screened routinely, to detect certain types of HPV infection which cause 99.7% of cervical cancer. An in-service evaluation is being commissioned by the National Institute for Health and Care Research to determine whether HPV self-sampling could be used to improve the NHS CSP.The HPV vaccination is offered to all adolescents in Year 8 of school, and catch-up vaccinations are available to those up to 25 years old, those born on or after 1 September 2006, for both females and males who may have missed vaccination under the schools’ programme, providing an additional failsafe. The HPV vaccination is also recommended to gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men, up to and including those aged 45 years old.NHS England’s vaccination strategy sets out a range of ambitions to improve uptake across the National Health Service’s vaccination programmes. This includes building on existing work and delivery to develop implementation plans for how HPV vaccinations, alongside cervical screening and pre-cancer treatment, can help achieve the NHS ambition to eliminate cervical cancer by 2040.

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: Health Services

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the availability of NHS provision for the treatment of ADHD in (a) Oxfordshire and (b) England.

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the availability of NHS provision for the diagnosis of ADHD in (a) Oxfordshire and (b) England.

Maria Caulfield: It is the responsibility of integrated care boards (ICBs) to make available appropriate provision to meet the health and care needs of their local population, including access to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) assessment and treatment, in line with relevant National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidance. The NICE guideline on ADHD does not recommend a maximum waiting time from referral for an assessment of ADHD to the point of assessment or diagnosis. The Department has not made a specific assessment of the availability of National Health Service provision for the diagnosis of, or treatment of, ADHD in Oxfordshire.In respect of the adequacy of ADHD service provision nationally, in December 2023, NHS England initiated a rapid piece of work to consider ADHD service provision within the NHS. The initial phase of work identified challenges, including with current service models and the ability to keep pace with demand. Following this initial review, NHS England is establishing a new ADHD taskforce alongside the Government, to look at ADHD service provision and its impact on patient experience. The new taskforce will bring together expertise from across a broad range of sectors, including the NHS, education, and justice, to better understand the challenges affecting people with ADHD, and to help provide a joined up approach in response to concerns around rising demand.Alongside the work of the taskforce, NHS England has announced that it will continue to work with stakeholders to develop a national ADHD data improvement plan, carry out more detailed work to understand the provider and commissioning landscape, and capture examples from local health systems which are trialling innovative ways of delivering ADHD services, to ensure best practice is captured and shared across the system.In respect of the availability of NHS provision for the treatment of ADHD nationally, the Department is aware of, and taking action to address, disruptions to the supply of medicine used for the management of ADHD. Disruptions to the supply of medicines have been primarily driven by issues which have resulted in capacity constraints at key manufacturing sites. Nationally, the Department has been working hard with industry to help resolve those issues as quickly as possible. As a result of our ongoing activity, some issues have been resolved. However, we know that there continue to be disruptions to the supply of some other medicines, including methylphenidate and guanfacine. The latest information we have received from manufacturers is that these should largely be resolved by May 2024 and October 2024, respectively.

Nurses: Training

Karin Smyth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many training places for district nurses her Department plans to make available in September 2025.

Andrew Stephenson: The NHS Long Term Workforce, published on 30 June 2023, sets out an ambition to increase the number of district nursing training places to 842 in 2025.

Lung Cancer: Public Health

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she has made a recent assessment of the effectiveness of the help us, help you campaign.

Andrew Stephenson: No recent assessment has been made. In 2020 NHS England launched the Help Us, Help You (HUHY) campaigns, a major public information campaign to persuade the public to seek urgent care and treatment when they needed it. The HUHY campaign strategy is designed to address the underlying barriers to cancer diagnosis, including multifaceted fears and a lack of body vigilance, along with the lack of knowledge of cancer symptoms, to encourage people to present earlier.On 8 January 2024, NHS England relaunched the HUHY campaign for cancer, designed to increase earlier diagnosis of cancer by reducing barriers to seeking earlier help, as well as increasing body vigilance and knowledge of key red flag symptoms. This campaign addresses barriers to people coming forward with suspected signs of cancer in general, and is not specific to screening or cervical cancer.We are seeing continued high levels of urgent cancer referrals, which suggests the HUHY campaigns continue to be effective. Over 12,000 urgent referrals were seen for suspected cancer per working day in February 2024, compared to approximately 9,000 in January 2020.

Department for Education

Home Education: Registration

Helen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to establish a register of children who are home educated.

Helen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of mandating regular welfare checks for home educated children.

Damian Hinds: The government supports the right of parents to educate their children at home. The department knows that many who do so are very committed and educate their children well, sometimes in difficult circumstances.However, this government is committed to ensuring local authorities ensure all of these children are in receipt of suitable education.The government is committed to legislating for statutory registers. Thanks to my honourable friend, the member for Meon Valley, for her work on her Children Not in School (Registers, Support and Orders) Bill, which the department is supporting as it progresses through Parliament.The bill will introduce statutory, local authority-maintained registers of children not in school and help local authorities undertake their existing duties to ensure all children receive a suitable education and are safe, regardless of where they are educated.It is important to note that elective home education in itself is not considered an inherent safeguarding risk. Most parents who take up the weighty responsibility of home education do a great job, and many children benefit from being educated at home. It is the government’s view that, when used correctly and in line with guidance, local authorities have sufficient existing powers to investigate and take action in cases where there is concern for the welfare of any child, including those who are educated at home. The department therefore does not have any plans to introduce regular mandatory welfare checks for these children.

Pupils: Autism

Tulip Siddiq: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that children with autism are adequately supported at school.

David Johnston: In the special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and alternative provision Improvement Plan, the department set out a vision to improve mainstream education by setting standards for the early and accurate identification of need and the timely provision of access to support. The standards will clarify the types of support that should be ordinarily available in mainstream settings and who is responsible for securing the support. This will give parents confidence and clarity on how their child’s needs will be met.As part of this, the department has committed to developing practitioner standards, which were known as practice guides in the Improvement Plan, to provide advice to education professionals. At least three practitioner standards will be published by the end of 2025, one of which will be focused on autism. The department will build on existing best practice and will include guidance on how an education environment may be adapted to better support the needs of autistic pupils.The department's Universal Services contract brings together SEND-specific continuous professional development and support for the school and further education workforce to improve outcomes for children and young people, including those who are autistic.The contract offers autism awareness training and resources delivered by the Autism Education Trust (AET). Over 135,000 education professionals have undertaken autism awareness training as part of AET's ‘train the trainer’ model since the Universal Services programme commenced in May 2022.

Special Educational Needs: Staff

Dr Luke Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to encourage more people to consider a career as a (a) SEND teacher and (b) member of support staff in a SEND school.

David Johnston: High-quality, well-supported teaching is the single most important in-school factor in improving outcomes for children, and it is particularly important for pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds and those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). That is why, on top of last years’ teacher pay award of 6.5%, which was the highest in over thirty years, the department ensures that an additional SEND allowance of up to £5,009 per year must be paid to teachers in a SEND post that requires a mandatory special educational needs qualification and involves teaching pupils with SEND.The department is further encouraging people to consider becoming teachers, including teachers of SEND, through its Get into Teaching service and marketing campaign. The campaign provides inspiration and support to explore a career in teaching and directs people to the Get into Teaching service’s website.Through the website, prospective trainees can access support and advice through expert one-to-one Teacher Training Advisers, a contact centre, and a national programme of events. The long-standing campaign has established a strong brand identity for teaching over time and continues to do so across the teacher lifecycle, supporting initial teacher training (ITT) recruitment whilst aiming to raise the status and improve perceptions of the profession over time.The department has put in place a range of measures, including bursaries worth £28,000 tax-free and scholarships worth £30,000 tax-free, to encourage talented trainees to key subjects such as mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing. The ITT financial incentives package for the 2024/25 recruitment cycle is worth up to £196 million, a £15 million increase on the last cycle.The department is also offering a Levelling Up Premium worth up to £3,000 after tax for mathematics, physics, chemistry and computing teachers in the first five years of their careers who choose to work in disadvantaged schools, including in Education Investment Areas. For 2024/25 and 2025/26, the department will be doubling the rates of the Levelling Up Premium to up to £6,000 after tax. This will support recruitment and retention of specialist teachers in these subjects and in the schools and areas that need them most.The department has published a range of resources to help address teacher workload and wellbeing and support schools to introduce flexible working practices. Similarly, it has convened a workload reduction taskforce to explore how the department can go further to support trust and school leaders to minimise workload for teachers and leaders.The government values and appreciates the dedication, professionalism and hard work of support staff, and knows that they play a key role in supporting children and young people with SEND. The department’s education reforms gave schools the freedom to make their own decisions about recruitment, pay, conditions, and use of support staff. Schools should have this freedom as they are best placed to understand their pupils’ needs. To support schools recruit and train teaching assistants, schools can access up to £7,000 in levy funding through the recently revised Level 3 Teaching Assistant apprenticeship.

Academic Freedom

Paul Blomfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 21 March 2024 to Question 17725 on Academic Freedom, whether she has had recent discussions with the Office for Students on whether (a) higher education institutions and (b) students’ unions will have enough time to implement the guidance on securing free speech within the law before those obligations enter into force.

David Johnston: My right hon. Friend, the Member for East Sussex, and former Minister for Children, Families and Wellbeing with responsibility for freedom of speech in the department, met with Professor Arif Ahmed in 2023 following his appointment, and discussed plans for implementation of the Higher Education (Freedom of Speech) Act (the Act) over the next two years. I also met with Arif Ahmed on 16 January 2024. The intention has always been for the Office for Students (OfS) to publish any guidance within good time of the Act coming into force to allow the sector sufficient time to consider it. The expectation expressed was that any guidance pertaining to the provisions that come into force on 1 August 2024 would be published by summer 2024, giving the sector the summer period to implement it into their practices. The department understands that the OfS continues to work towards these timelines as set out on their website here: https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/quality-and-standards/freedom-of-speech/changes-to-regulation/, although precise timings are a matter for the OfS. A draft version of the guidance that the OfS intend to issue following consultation has already been published for the sector to consider here: https://www.officeforstudents.org.uk/media/fsvjdljh/regulatory-advice-24-guidance-related-to-freedom-of-speech.pdf.

Schools: Carers

Munira Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many schools recorded zero young carers in their most recent school census return.

Munira Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential implications for her policies of the number of schools that recorded zero young carers in their most recent school census return; and what steps her Department is taking to improve the identification of young carers in schools.

David Johnston: The most recent published census data on young carers is from January 2023, and can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/school-pupils-and-their-characteristics/2022-23.You can find the number of young carers in each school in column JF of the school level underlying data file – see ‘School level underlying data - 2022/23 (csv, 22 Mb)’ under the heading ‘Additional supporting files’. 17,093 of the total 21,642 state-funded schools recorded no young carers. Statistics from the January 2024 school census will be published in June.As this is a new data collection, the department expects the quality of the data returns to improve over time as the collection becomes established. All schools, except nursery schools, must send this information as part of the Spring school census. However, the recording and handling of the information is at the school’s discretion. In 2023, 79% of schools recorded no young carers.Young carers make an enormous contribution in caring for their loved ones. The department wants to ensure that they are supported in their education and can take advantage of opportunities beyond their caring responsibilities.The department added young carers to the annual school census in 2023, raising the visibility of young carers in the school system and, in time, providing the department with hard evidence on both the numbers of young carers and their educational outcomes.The department will be incorporating young carers in the school-level annual school census for independent schools from early 2024 to ensure parity with the school census, which further builds on the department’s data on young carers across the school system.The government has published information on how and where young carers can get help and support, encouraging them to speak to someone they trust at their school or college, like a teacher or school nurse, about their caring responsibilities and how this might affect them. As set out in ‘Keeping children safe in education’, the department require Designated Safeguarding Leads to undergo training to provide them with the knowledge and skills to carry out their role, which includes having a good understanding of, and alertness to, the needs of young carers. The guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/keeping-children-safe-in-education--2.

Students: Grants

Rosie Duffield: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing non-repayable maintenance grants for higher education students from the least advantaged backgrounds.

Luke Hall: The government believes that income contingent student loans are a fair and sensible way of financing higher education (HE). It is only right that those who benefit from the system should make a fair contribution to its costs. The government have continued to increase maximum loans and grants for living and other costs for undergraduate and postgraduate students each year, with a 2.8% increase for the 2023/24 academic year and a further 2.5% increase announced for 2024/25. In addition, the government have frozen maximum tuition fees for the 2023/24 and 2024/25 academic years. By 2024/25, maximum fees will have been frozen for seven successive years. The department believe that the current fee freeze achieves the best balance between ensuring that the system remains financially sustainable, offering good value for the taxpayer, and reducing debt levels for students in real terms. The government understands the pressures people have been facing with the cost of living and has taken action to help. The government have already made £276 million of student premium and mental health funding available for the 2023/24 academic year to support successful outcomes for students including disadvantaged students. The government have also made a further £10 million of support available to help student mental health and hardship funding for the 2023/24 academic year. This funding will complement the help universities are providing through their own bursary, scholarship and hardship support schemes. For the 2024/25 financial year, the government have increased the Student Premium (full-time, part-time, and disabled premium) by £5 million to reflect high demand for hardship support. Further details of this allocation for the academic year 2024/25 will be announced by the Office for Students in the summer. Overall, support to households to help with the high cost of living is worth £108 billion over 2022/23 to 2024/25, which is an average of £3,800 per UK household. The government believes this will have eased the pressure on family budgets, which will in turn enable many families to provide additional support to their children in HE to help them meet increased living costs.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

UNRWA: Guided Weapons

Tom Randall: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he has had discussions with the UNRWA on the reported launching of rockets from within its facilities.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK takes allegations of neutrality violations extremely seriously, including any incidents related to UN installations. The FCDO also monitors this closely through our annual assessment of UNRWA. When violations have been identified, UNRWA has taken action, including raising the issue with relevant parties.We are aware that the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services and Catherine Colonna have now provided their interim reports to the UN Secretary-General. Their independent investigations include assessment of the policies and systems UNRWA has in place to ensure neutrality.

Wassenaar Arrangement

Liam Byrne: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Wassenaar Arrangement in controlling the dual-use export of (a) artificial intelligence, (b) quantum computing, (c) biometric tools and data and (d) intangible technology transfers.

Liam Byrne: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he is taking diplomatic steps to reform (a) the Wassenaar Arrangement and (b) other export control and non-proliferation agreements.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: The Wassenaar Arrangement is a long-established multilateral export control regime which operates by consensus. It includes the majority of states producing these advanced technologies and draws on expertise from all members to develop control lists, which are updated annually. These lists are used by participating states to implement their export controls and, as the Wassenaar Arrangement sets the global standard for good practice, non-member states also incorporate the control lists into their domestic legislation.The UK is an active member of the Wassenaar Arrangement and other multilateral export control regimes. We submit and review proposals related to these advanced technologies, share best practice, and participate in outreach to non-member states. We are co-ordinating with G7 and other partners to strengthen export controls, including to update multilateral export control regime lists to keep pace with rapid technological developments.

Gaza: Humanitarian Aid

Claire Hanna: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what discussions he has had with his Israeli counterpart on increasing the amount of aid entering Gaza.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The Foreign Secretary visited Israel on 17 April and met with Israeli counterparts. During his visit he said to Prime Minister Netanyahu and Foreign Affairs Minister Katz that we must maintain focus on getting more aid into Gaza and getting hostages out.

Gaza: Women

Emma Hardy: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps he is taking to help support women and girls in Gaza.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: We trebled our aid commitment during Financial Year 23-24 to support partners including the British Red Cross, UNICEF, the UN World Food Programme and the Egyptian Red Crescent. This includes £4.25 million to the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, to provide life-saving support to vulnerable women and girls in Gaza. This support is expected to reach about 111,500 women, around 1 in 5 of the adult women in Gaza. It will support up to 100 community midwives, the distribution of around 20,000 menstrual hygiene management kits and 45,000 clean delivery kits.We have also provided targeted support for children through a £5.75 million contribution. This is supporting work to assist over 5,800 children with severe malnourishment and 853,000 children, adolescents and caregivers affected by the conflict, to receive emergency and child protection services, including mental health and psychosocial support.Through our Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict programmes and dedicated funding totalling £60 million since 2012, we are leading work internationally to prevent conflict-related sexual violence and strengthen justice and support for all survivors. We stand ready to use our PSVI expertise and tools to ensure victims and survivors of CRSV, both Israeli and Palestinian, receive the holistic and survivor-centred support they need.

Gaza: Hospitals and Humanitarian Aid

Emma Hardy: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what recent assessment he has made of the extent of the damage to (a) hospitals and (b) aid agency offices in Gaza.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: It is clear that the international community will need to make a massive effort to deliver a reconstruction plan for GazaAll parties must act within International Humanitarian Law. Hamas is putting Palestinian civilians at grave risk by embedding themselves in the civilian population and civilian infrastructure.We also want to see Israel take greater care to limit its operations to military targets and avoid harming civilians and destroying homes.The Foreign Secretary and Prime Minister have underlined the need for Israel to increase the amount of aid getting into Gaza, deconflict with the UN and aid agencies, protect civilians and repair vital infrastructure like hospitals and water networks.

Israel: Foreign Relations

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if he will publish a summary of the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs' recent meeting with Benny Gantz.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The Foreign Secretary issued a statement on 6 March, following his meeting with Israeli Minister Benny Gantz. The Foreign Secretary made clear the steps Israel must take to increase aid into Gaza, and the UK's deep concern about the prospect of a military offensive in Rafah.

Gaza: Bombings

Apsana Begum: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether his Department has made a recent estimate of the number of (a) schools, (b) hospitals and (c) refugee camps in Gaza that have been struck by bombs since 8 October 2023.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: It is clear that the international community will need to make a massive effort to deliver a reconstruction plan for GazaAll parties must act within International Humanitarian Law. Hamas is putting Palestinian civilians at grave risk by embedding themselves in the civilian population and civilian infrastructure.We also want to see Israel take greater care to limit its operations to military targets and avoid harming civilians and destroying homes.The Foreign Secretary and Prime Minister have underlined the need for Israel to increase the amount of aid getting into Gaza, deconflict with the UN and aid agencies, protect civilians and repair vital infrastructure like hospitals and water networks.

Democratic Republic of Congo: Armed Conflict

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment he has made of the potential risk of a conflict involving (a) South Africa, (b) Burundi, (c) Uganda, (d) Tanzania and (e) Malawi arising from support by Rwanda for the M23 Tutsi-led rebels in eastern Congo.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: We regularly raise ongoing regional tensions with the Governments of DRC, Rwanda and members of the SADC at the highest levels. On 28 March, the Foreign Secretary spoke with Rwandan President Kagame to encourage de-escalation and renewed political dialogue, and Lord Benyon raised the importance of regional diplomatic processes with DRC President Tshisekedi, during his visit to Kinshasa on 14 March. On 9 April, the Prime Minister met with President Kagame and underlined the importance of a political process to resolve the situation. Minister Mitchell also raised this issue with President Kagame during his visit to Rwanda on 6 April.

Gaza: Ceasefires

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps he is taking to help ensure compliance with UN Security Council resolution S/RES/2728 (2024) on The situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK welcomes UN Security Council Resolution 2728 which reflects international consensus behind the UK's position including a demand for the unconditional release of all hostages. The United Kingdom has long been calling for an immediate humanitarian pause leading to a sustainable ceasefire without a return to destruction, fighting and loss of life, as the fastest way to get hostages out and aid in. That is what this resolution calls for and why the United Kingdom voted yes on this text.On 5th April Israel committed to significant steps to increase the amount of aid getting to Gaza, including allowing the delivery of humanitarian aid through the Port of Ashdod and the Erez checkpoint.The UK has urged Israel to take these steps for a long time and they are welcome. We are resolved that the international community will work with Israel to see these vital changes fully implemented.

Democratic Republic of Congo: Rwanda

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what representations he has made to his Rwandan counterpart on the escalation in fighting between the army of the Democratic Republic of Congo and M23 Tutsi-led rebels in eastern Congo.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: On 28 March, the Foreign Secretary spoke with Rwandan President Kagame to encourage de-escalation, and Lord Benyon raised the importance of regional diplomatic processes with DRC President Tshisekedi on 14 March. We welcome the recent mediation efforts facilitated by the Angola-led Luanda peace process and continue to urge all parties to commit to further political dialogue. On 9 April, the Prime Minister met with President Kagame and underlined the importance of a political process to resolve the situation. I also raised this issue with President Kagame during my visit to Rwanda on 6 April.

UNRWA: Finance

Alan Brown: To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, pursuant to the answer of 15 April 2024 to Question 20677 on UNRWA: Finance, what evidence his Department has received from Israel confirming allegations made against UNRWA; and whether he has shared that evidence with (a) UNRWA and (b) governments that have reinstated funding to UNRWA.

Alan Brown: To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, pursuant to the Answer of 15 April 2024 to Question 20677 on UNRWA: Finance and with reference to the measures and conditions set out in correspondence published by the EU Commissioner on 6 March 2024, whether (a) he and (b) the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs has had discussions with UNRWA to (i) seek similar assurances and (ii) ascertain the detailed undertakings relating to changes in personnel, policy and precedents.

Alan Brown: To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, what (a) criteria he is using and (b) conditions he has set for UNRWA to determine the resumption of funding to that organisation; and what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of the interim reports of the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services and Catherine Colonna.

Alan Brown: To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2024 to Question 18736 on Hamas: UNRWA, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of Israel's cooperation with the investigations carried out by the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services and Catherine Colonna; and whether the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs has had discussions with his Israeli counterpart on that country's cooperation with those investigations.

Alan Brown: To ask the Deputy Foreign Secretary, with reference to the Note to Correspondents on the Independent Review of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) of 20 March 2024, what assessment he has made of the (a) adequacy of the mechanisms and procedures UNRWA has in place to ensure compliance with the Humanitarian Principle of neutrality and (b) potential implications of that Note for his policies towards UNRWA; and if will resume funding to UNRWA.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: We are appalled by allegations that UNRWA staff were involved in the 7 October attack against Israel, a heinous act of terrorism that the UK Government has repeatedly condemned.We are aware that the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services and Catherine Colonna have now provided their interim reports to the UN Secretary-GeneralWe want UNRWA to give detailed undertakings about changes in personnel, policy and precedents to ensure this can never happen again.We are working with allies to try to bring this situation to a rapid conclusion - not least because UNRWA have a vital role to play in providing aid and services in Gaza. We continue to urge Israel and all parties with relevant information to cooperate fully with the independent investigations.

Tibet: Human Rights

Jim Shannon: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what recent assessment his Department has made of the human rights situation in Lhasa.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: We are concerned about human rights violations in Lhasa and Tibet more widely, including restrictions on freedom of religion or belief and on freedom of assembly and association, reports of forced labour, and reports that boarding schools are being used to assimilate Tibetan children into Han culture.The UK Government consistently raises human rights issues with the Chinese authorities - the Foreign Secretary did so in February in a meeting with China's Foreign Minister. We also regularly raise Tibet in multilateral fora, for example, in January at China's Universal Periodic Review, and on 20 March as part of our Item 4 statement at the United Nations Human Rights Council.

China

Jim Shannon: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, whether he plans to visit China.

Anne-Marie Trevelyan: We will confirm Ministerial travel in the usual way.

Gaza: UNRWA

Robin Millar: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what information his Department holds on the number and proportion of (a) headteachers and (b) deputy headteachers at UNWRA schools in Gaza that are members of terror organisations; and whether he has had recent discussions with international counterparts on the adequacy of the governance of UNRWA in Gaza.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK is not aware of any headteachers or deputy headteachers currently working at UNRWA schools that are members of terror organisations. The UK takes allegations of neutrality violations extremely seriously, including any allegations related to terror organisations' involvement in UNWRA's education provision. This is something we monitor carefully in our annual assessment of UNRWA. The UK is following closely the independent review led by Catherine Colonna which is assessing the mechanisms and procedures that the Agency currently has in place to ensure neutrality.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: Ministers

John Cryer: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, if the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs will meet with hon. Members to discuss the situation in Gaza.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The Foreign Secretary remains fully committed to ongoing engagement with Parliament, including on the conflict in Israel and Gaza. We will consider future briefing sessions for parliamentarians on topical events as needed.

Kurds: Turkey

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps he is taking to promote relations between the Kurdistan Regional Government and Turkey.

David Rutley: We reiterate to all parties the need for dialogue and cooperation between the Kurdistan Region of Iraq and Turkey to combat terrorism, ensure regional security, and protect civilians.The UK recognises Turkey's right to self-defence but also fully supports the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Iraq. It is critical that Turkey and Iraq reach a way of addressing their security concerns that does not lead to greater regional instability.

Kurds: Peace Negotiations

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what steps he is taking to promote stability in the (a) region of Kurdistan and (b) surrounding area.

David Rutley: Through our diplomatic engagements, we continue to encourage greater cooperation between Baghdad and Erbil to resolve their outstanding issues, as well as between the political parties in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI).Our focus remains on bolstering the region's stability through our bilateral programming and defence offer. As a leading member of the Global Coalition, the UK supports the Iraqi Security Forces and the Kurdish Peshmerga to tackle the threat from Daesh and promote stability. This is in addition to the UK's contribution to NATO Mission in Iraq.

Democratic Republic of Congo: Humanitarian Aid

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what humanitarian support his Department is providing to the civilian population around Goma.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK will continue to support the protection of civilians in and around Goma, including through our £98 million 3-year humanitarian programme for the East of DRC, which delivers life-saving emergency assistance to over 1.1 million people and protects and builds the resilience of the most vulnerable.

Democratic Republic of Congo: Rwanda

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what estimate he has made of the extent of Rwandan (a) military and (b) financial support for the M23 Tutsi-led rebels in eastern Congo.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: We are monitoring the situation in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and M23 closely, and continue to raise this with the governments of DRC and Rwanda. We welcome the recent mediation efforts facilitated by the Angola-led Luanda peace process. We continue to urge all parties to commit to further political dialogue.

Diplomatic Service

Julian Knight: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, how many requests for consular support were made to each British Embassy or Consulate in 2023; and how many of those were responded to by officials within a period of 24 hours.

David Rutley: Our consular staff endeavour to give appropriate and tailored assistance 24 hours a day, seven days a week and 365 days a year, to British nationals overseas and their families in the UK who need support. In 2023, in addition to long running cases, we provided support to around 22,000 British nationals, see breakdown by Post in the table below. The FCDO reports publicly on consular delivery through the FCDO Outcome Delivery Plan [https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/foreign-commonwealth-development-office-outcome-delivery-plan]. Publishing our transparency data is currently on hold while we embed a new Case Management system.COUNTRY2023Afghanistan22Albania63Algeria23AngolaArgentina34Armenia8Australia414Austria92Azerbaijan12Bahrain48Barbados113Belarus6Belgium152Bolivia12Bosnia and Herzegovina12Botswana15Brazil88Bulgaria166Cambodia112Cameroon30Canada181Chile21China143Colombia73Congo (Democratic Republic)22Costa Rica39Croatia114Cuba29Cyprus441Czechia141Denmark88Dominican Republic67Ecuador13Egypt383Estonia19Ethiopia104Fiji21Finland49France1027Georgia27Germany662Ghana85Greece936Guatemala43GuineaGuyana17Hong Kong SAR110Hungary131Iceland17India360Indonesia196Iraq46Ireland104Israel39Italy411Ivory CoastJamaica179Japan167Jerusalem61Jordan71Kazakhstan14Kenya146Kuwait30KyrgyzstanLaos29Latvia20Lebanon34LiberiaLithuania23Luxembourg10MadagascarMalawiMalaysia138Malta106Mauritius14Mexico207Moldova13Mongolia6Montenegro33Morocco222Myanmar (Burma)8Namibia9Nepal21Netherlands287New Zealand127Nigeria74Norway149Oman50Pakistan376Panama17ParaguayPeru58Philippines283Poland242Portugal524Qatar96Romania89Russia28Rwanda7Saudi Arabia166Senegal21Serbia29Seychelles11Sierra Leone15Singapore105Slovakia38Slovenia17South Africa195South Korea40Spain4143Sri Lanka86St Lucia21Sudan34Sweden110Switzerland157Taiwan22Tajikistan6Tanzania36Thailand1383The Gambia48Trinidad and Tobago40Tunisia75Turkey947Uganda52Ukraine56United Arab Emirates658United States1649Uruguay10Uzbekistan8VenezuelaVietnam188Zambia22Zimbabwe26NB We do not publish data where figures are 5 or below to comply with GDPR

Uganda: Homosexuality

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment he has made of the implications for his polices of the Ugandan Constitutional Court’s decision to decline to nullify the Anti-Homosexuality Act 2023.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK Government is appalled that the Government of Uganda has signed the deeply discriminatory Anti-Homosexuality Bill 2023 into law.It has increased violence and discrimination against LGBT+ people and is part of a wider roll-back of human rights. The Foreign Secretary and I [Minister Mitchell] commented to this effect on 3 April, following the Ugandan Constitutional Court's judgment. I [Minister Mitchell] met the Ugandan Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs on 3 April, underlining the importance of ensuring that people are free from persecution, regardless of sexuality. We will continue to support the human rights of LGBT+ people, and all Ugandans.

Zimbabwe: Droughts

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what support his Department is providing to Zimbabwe to help with the drought in that country.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: The UK commends the Government of Zimbabwe for identifying the potential impacts of the El Nino induced drought and are working with humanitarian agencies, the UN and donor nations and the Government of Zimbabwe to understand plans and options for international support if needed. Africa Risk Capacity, a UK-supported African Union-led disaster risk insurance mechanism, has confirmed that several pay outs will be triggered in Zimbabwe as a result of the declaration of a state of emergency. Additionally, the UK-funded START Network programme will shortly release funds for anticipatory actions to support the drought response.

Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities

Ground Rent

Andrew Lewer: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he plans to compensate (a) institutional investors and (b) pension-holders for loss of income as a result of his Department’s proposed cap on ground rents.

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether it remains his policy to introduce a cap on ground rents to a peppercorn value.

Ian Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of capping ground rents on leasehold homes at nominal rates.

Lee Rowley: The Government recently consulted on a range of options to restrict ground rents for existing leases. Alongside the consultation we published a consultation impact assessment, assessing the expected costs and benefits of each of the policy options. This can be found here: Consultation impact assessment - modern leasehold: restricting ground rent for existing leases - GOV.UK.We are carefully considering the responses we have received and will set out next steps due course.

Forfeiture: Reform

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he plans to bring forward an amendment to the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Bill to ban forfeiture.

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he is taking to tackle high services charges for leaseholders in Battersea.

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what support his Department is providing to leaseholders in Battersea who are facing service charges increases.

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he plans to introduce legislation to create a regulator for service charges.

Lee Rowley: The Government has set out its position on leasehold reform as part of the progress of the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Bill.

Affordable Housing: Construction

Sir Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what recent assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the number of (a) social and (b) affordable housing properties built by developers; and what steps his Department is taking to encourage more affordable housing to be built.

Jacob Young: Our £11.5 billion Affordable Homes Programme will deliver thousands of affordable homes, both for rent and to buy, right across the country.The Levelling Up White Paper committed to increasing the supply of social rented homes, and a large number of the new homes delivered through our Affordable Homes Programme will be for social rent.The government is on track to deliver its target of building around 250,000 affordable homes through the Affordable Homes Programme.Local planning authorities can secure addition contributions towards affordable housing through section 106 planning obligations.The Levelling Up and Regeneration Act contains powers for the Government to create a new mandatory, non-negotiable Infrastructure Levy which will aim to generate more funding for affordable housing and infra-structure to support sustainable development.

Mortgages

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what assessment he has made of levels of mortgage lenders compliance with the latest RICS guidance.

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what guidance his Department has issued to mortgage lenders to help ensure their compliance with RICS guidance on the requirement for EWS1 certificates.

Lee Rowley: The External Wall System Review form (EWS1) is not a statutory requirement or government process. It is an industry tool to inform mortgage valuation. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) have issued guidance on the use and application of EWS1 forms.Following the Department’s work in this area, a number of mortgage lenders have joined a voluntary commitment to offer mortgages on properties affected by building safety issues. This means that around three quarters of mortgage lending is now covered by this commitment, which commits lenders to consider mortgage applications for properties in buildings that are yet to be remediated, or where leaseholders are protected from remediation costs.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

BBC: Finance

Jeff Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what criteria her Department uses to determine who will be consulted on the Government’s BBC funding model review; and if she will publish a list of those that have been consulted.

Julia Lopez: As set out in the Terms of Reference for the BBC Funding Model Review, the review will take evidence from a range of relevant stakeholders as we seek to assess the merits of different options for securing the sustainability of the BBC. The Secretary of State issued formal evidence requests to industry stakeholders across the broadcasting and media sector and to all three of the Devolved Administrations.The review aims to report to the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport by Autumn 2024. The findings will inform Charter Review, which is where any final decisions on changing the BBC’s funding model will be made by the Government. As required by the Charter, the Government will consult the public as part of the Charter Review process.

BBC: Finance

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether the Terms of Reference for the BBC Funding Review Panel allow the Panel to consider all the funding options contained in the 6th report of the DCMS Select Committee of session 2019-21, and in the annex to that report.

Julia Lopez: The Terms of Reference for the BBC Funding Model Review set out that the Government wants the BBC to continue to succeed as a Public Service Broadcaster long into the future, providing high quality public service content on a universal basis.As the Terms of Reference make clear, the review will be looking at a range of models for funding the BBC to ensure it is fair to licence fee payers, sustainable for the long term and supports the BBC’s vital role in growing the creative industries. This will include looking at options to reform the licence fee, and how the BBC can increase its commercial revenues. Given pressure on household incomes, the Secretary of State has explicitly ruled out this review looking at creating any new taxes.The findings of the review will support the Government’s views on the future funding of the BBC. Any final decision on reforming the BBC’s funding model would be taken at Charter Review.

BBC: Finance

Ben Lake: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she plans to have discussions with the Welsh Government on the BBC Funding Model Review.

Julia Lopez: The Terms of Reference for the BBC Funding Model Review set out that the review would undertake close engagement with the devolved administrations, including the Welsh Government, as appropriate. As part of the review’s evidence gathering exercise, evidence requests have already been sent to the Welsh Government, alongside the other Devolved Administrations. The Government intends to continue engaging the Welsh Government, and relevant broadcasting stakeholders in Wales, as the review progresses.

British Film Institute: Finance

Andy Carter: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how much funding her Department has given to the British Film Institute since 2010.

Julia Lopez: The government is committed to the continued success of the film and high end TV (HETV) sectors. As an Arms-Length Body (ALB), the British Film Institute (BFI) plays a critical role in leading the UK’s screen sectors, helping drive economic growth and create jobs while supporting cultural and place-based objectives.DCMS has provided nearly £400 million of funding in total to the BFI since 2010. The BFI is also a National Lottery Distributor and also has its own self-generated income. More information on the BFI’s funding, including from DCMS, going back to 1998/99 can be found in the BFI’s published accounts via: https://www.bfi.org.uk/strategy-policy/annual-review-management-agreement.

BBC: Finance

Christine Jardine: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what steps she plans to take to enable (a) industry representatives and (b) other relevant stakeholders to make submissions to the BBC funding model review.

Christine Jardine: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will make it her policy to publish the evidence and submissions received to inform her Department's BBC funding model review.

Christine Jardine: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, whether she plans to publish the (a) minutes and (b) conclusions of the meetings of the expert panel for the Government’s BBC funding model review.

Julia Lopez: The BBC Funding Review is looking at how alternative funding models could help secure the broadcaster’s long-term sustainability amid an evolving media landscape, increased competition and changing audience behaviour, while reducing the burden on licence fee payers. It is a government-led review, supported by an expert panel that incorporates a broad range of views from across the sector, providing advice and external challenge on the issues set out in the review’s Terms of Reference, which are available on gov.uk.Stakeholders are submitting evidence on the basis that evidence provided is confidential in nature, especially given potential commercial sensitivities, and there is no intention for these submissions to be made public, either in full or in part.

Television Licences

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what the expenditure on TV licence reminder letters was in each year since 2020.

Julia Lopez: Under the Communications Act 2003, the BBC is responsible for the collection and enforcement of the licence fee, not the Government. The BBC’s role in enforcing the Licence Fee is set out in the Royal Charter. The BBC carries this out under the trading name TV Licensing.Data on the cost of licence fee collection for TV Licensing is contained in their published annual reviews. The cost of collection data does contain partial disaggregation into different cost categories, however exact data on the cost of administering TV licence reminder letters is unavailable.Further information on costs and administering the licence fee can be found directly on the TV Licensing website: https://www.tvlicensing.co.uk/about/our-performance-AB6

BBC: Finance

Jeff Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the BBC Funding Model Review: Terms of Reference, published on 21 March 2024, what steps she plans to take to ensure that the review assesses the potential merits of all options for securing the sustainability of the BBC.

Julia Lopez: The government believes that there are challenges around the sustainability of the current licence fee funding model, and is therefore conducting a review of the BBC’s funding model.As the Terms of Reference make clear, the Review is assessing a range of options for funding the BBC. It is looking at how alternative models could help secure the broadcaster’s long-term sustainability amid an evolving media landscape, increased competition and changing audience behaviour, while reducing the burden on licence fee payers.

Holiday Accommodation: Registration

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, how her Department plans to manage the proposed national register for short-term lets; what information property owners will be required to provide to the register; and what estimate she has made of the (a) timeframe for implementing and (b) average cost to property owners to register their properties on the system.

Julia Lopez: We are now conducting an initial phase of digital development to test how the short-term lets registration scheme is best delivered. This initial phase of digital development will allow us to consider and test how the scheme is best managed, including matters such as the frequency of registration, which information should be collected and cost to property owners. Further details on the scheme will be provided later this year, including our full response to the consultation and information on the legislative process that will bring the scheme to life.

BBC: Finance

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, if she will have discussions with the BBC on ensuring that it advertises its upcoming consultation on reforming the licence fee post-2028 to help ensure the public's views are adequately represented.

Julia Lopez: Ministers meet with senior BBC officials regularly to discuss a range of issues. Those discussions include how the BBC is delivering on its obligations, which includes a general duty to engage with the public. The BBC is operationally independent, and therefore questions on how it engages public views and runs consultations are a matter for the BBC itself.As required by the Charter, the Government will consult the public as part of the forthcoming Charter Review process, where any decisions on reforming the licence fee post-2027 will be made and implemented.

Department for Business and Trade

Ethanol: Manufacturing Industries

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether her Department has held discussions with UK Export Finance on (a) the closure of the ethanol plant at Grangemouth and (b) the proposed INEOS plant in Antwerp.

Greg Hands: UK Export Finance and the Department for Business and Trade are strategically and operationally aligned, and routinely share relevant information across all business areas.

INEOS: Belgium

Kenny MacAskill: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to Answer of 25 March 2024 to Question 19719 on INEOS: Belgium, how many (a) ethanol and (b) ethanol-related products will be produced at the new Ineos site in Antwerp.

Greg Hands: The INEOS Project One plant will not be producing ethanol or ethanol related products.

Elbit Systems UK: Exports

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether an Elbit Systems UK (a) company, (b) subsidiary and (c) agent has been issued with a licence to export aero-engines for military use since 2008.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether military aero-engines have been exported to (a) Elbit subsidiaries and (b) companies owned by Elbit Systems Ltd in Israel.

Alan Mak: Our records show that since 2008 and up to 30 June 2023, which is the date of the Government’s most recent Official Statistics release on export licensing decisions, we have not issued an export licence to ‘Elbit Systems UK’ to export aero-engines for military use. Our records also show that as at 30 June 2023, we had granted one temporary Standard Individual Export Licence (SIEL) to export military aero-engines to ‘Elbit Systems Limited’ in Israel. We do not hold a comprehensive list of all of the subsidiaries or companies owned by Elbit Systems Limited.

UK Defence and Security Exports: Small Businesses

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, how much her Department has spent on the SME team at UK Defence and Security Exports in each financial year since 2019-20.

Alan Mak: The department has interpreted this as the amount spent on staffing costs for Civil Servants on DBT payroll within the SME team at UK Defence and Security Exports. The cost for each financial year since 2019-20 is outlined in the table below. Financial YearSpendApr 2019 - Mar 2020£161,098Apr 2020 - Mar 2021£145,676Apr 2021 - Mar 2022£65,837Apr 2022- Mar 2023£115,881Apr 2023 - Mar 2024£99,642 Staffing costs include the base salaries, allowances, overtime, non-consolidated performance bonuses and employer National Insurance and pensions contributions for those working in the team during the relevant financial reporting period. Note: Due to Machinery of Government changes the costs up to and including July 2023 relate to the former Department for International Trade only and then following the transfer of staff in August 2023 to DBT.

Food: Japan

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to her Department's press release of 27 February 2024 entitled UK businesses welcome protection for iconic British food and drink in Japan, for what reason Kikuchi Suiden Gobo was included among the 37 Japanese products listed in that press release as receiving geographical indication status in the UK, but was not included among the 37 Japanese products added to the protected food and drink names website maintained by the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 8 March 2024.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to her Department's press release of 27 February 2024 entitled UK businesses welcome protection for iconic British food and drink in Japan, for what reason Yatsushiro Tokusan Banpeiyu was not included among the 37 Japanese products listed in that press release as receiving geographical indication status in the UK, but was included among the 37 Japanese products added to the protected food and drink names website maintained by the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on 8 March 2024.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to his Department's press release of 27 February 2024 entitled UK businesses welcome protection for iconic British food and drink in Japan, what the outcome was of the application by the Japanese authorities to award geographical indication status in the UK to Iwate Mokutan/Iwate Kirizumi, as published for consultation by the Department for International Trade on 21 December 2021.

Greg Hands: Kikuchi Suiden Gobo was added onto the UK GI register as a protected product on 8 March 2024. The department has amended the press release of 27 February 2024 to include Kikuchi Suiden Gobo. The updated press release can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-businesses-welcome-protection-for-iconic-british-food-and-drink-in-japan.The entry for Yatsushiro Tokusan Banpeiyu was delayed but has now been completed and is listed alongside the other 37 first tranche products from Japan.The UK was unable to register Iwate Mokutan as a GI because there is no classification under current UK domestic legislation which could include charcoal. The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs wrote to the Japanese authorities in 2022 to explain this decision, which they accepted.

Competition and Markets Authority: Pay

Matt Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what the pay ranges at each grade are for Competition and Markets Authority staff based (a) in and (b) outside London.

Kevin Hollinrake: Current pay at the Competition and Markets Authority ranges from a minimum of £25,300 to a maximum of £27,900 for Administrative Officers, the lowest pay grade, to a minimum of £127,000 to a maximum of £208,100 for Senior Civil Service Pay Band 3, which is Director General level and the most senior grade. My officials will share a detailed breakdown of pay ranges separately.In relation to pay in and outside of London, the CMA does not differentiate pay based on location. Pay and funding are the responsibility of HM Treasury, who are the financial sponsors of the CMA.Pay BandsAdministrative Officer to Grade 6 – effective from 1 September 2023GradePay minimaPay mid-pointPay maximaAO£25,300£26,600£27,900EO£29,550£31,825£34,100HEO£36,550£40,975£45,400SEO£46,000£49,950£53,900G7£57,100£64,650£72,200G7 (Competition Specialist)£59,100£66,750£74,400G6£71,300£77,550£83,800G6 (Competition Specialist)£78,600£84,450£90,300 Senior Civil Service – effective from 1 April 2023GradeSpecialismPay minimumPay maximumDeputy DirectorNon-Competition Specialist:£75,000£117,800(SCS Pay Band 1)Competition Specialist:£96,923£117,800DirectorNon-Competition Specialist:£97,000£162,500(SCS Pay Band 2)Competition Specialist:£128,966£162,500Director GeneralAll roles:£127,000£208,100(SCS Pay Band 3)

Electric Vehicles: Manufacturing Industries

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she has had discussions with car manufacturers on levels of disruption to supply chains for (a) temperature sensors and (b) other spare parts for electric vehicles since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Alan Mak: HMG understands the concerns of the Automotive industry regarding the potential impact of the invasion on its business operations and supply chains worldwide. The Department for Business and Trade ministers regularly meet with sector bodies and auto manufacturers to discuss a variety of automotive related trade issues, including an understanding of any direct and indirect impacts on UK operations.

Body Shop: Redundancy

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether provisions have been made for employees of The Bodyshop who were made redundant.

Kevin Hollinrake: I understand this will be a concerning time for those impacted. The Department for Work and Pensions’ Rapid Response Service is a service designed to give support and advice to employers and their employees when faced with redundancy.The range of support may include:Connecting people to jobs in the labour market.Help with job search including CV writing, interview skills, where to find jobs and how to apply for them.Help to identify transferable skills and skills gaps (linked to the local labour market).What benefits they may get and how to claim. Employees may be entitled to statutory redundancy pay, compensatory notice pay and holiday pay from the Insolvency Service. Further information may be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/news/the-body-shop-in-administration-information-for-employees-and-creditors.

UK Defence and Security Exports: Trade Fairs

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she has made an estimate of the cost to the public purse of expenditure by UK Defence and Security Exports on (a) domestic and (b) overseas trade shows in each year since 2010.

Alan Mak: The Department for Business and Trade has made no such estimate.

Energy: Prices

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 15 November 2023 to Question 1306 on Energy: Prices, if she will make an (a) estimate of when the Supercharger proposals will be fully implemented and (b) an assessment of the potential impact of their full implementation on the international competitiveness of UK electricity costs.

Alan Mak: The government committed to implementing the Supercharger measures between April 2024 and April 2025. The 4 statutory instruments that enact the Supercharger came into force on 1 April and the first measure has been implemented. The second measure will be implemented from 1 October and the final measure will be implemented from April 2025.Taken together, the government estimates that Government support on electricity prices for Energy Intensive Industries (EIIs) in the form of the British Industry Supercharger could be worth (on average) around £24-£31 Per MegaWatt Hour (MWh) for eligible businesses, closing the competitive gap with their international competitors.

Food: Japan

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, with reference to her Department's press release entitled UK businesses welcome protection for iconic British food and drink in Japan, published on 27 February 2024, how many food and drink products are included in the second group for which her Department are seeking geographical indication protection in Japan under the terms of the UK-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership.

Greg Hands: For the second tranche of GIs, the UK has put forward 39 food and drink products seeking GI protection under the terms of the UK-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership. The second group is set to be announced once Japan has concluded its examination of the names.

Cabinet Office

Civil Service: Political Impartiality

Nick Fletcher: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether he has had discussions with the Cabinet Secretary on the contents of a response to the correspondence sent by the Civil Service Sex Equality and Equity Network in October 2023 on Civil Service impartiality.

John Glen: It is a long-established precedent that information about the discussions that have taken place between Cabinet ministers and officials is not normally shared publicly. However, as mentioned in the Minister’s speech at the Institute for Government on 23 January 2024, the Cabinet Office will be introducing new impartiality guidance which will support Civil Servants to remain objective and impartial when engaging in diversity and inclusion work.

Cabinet Office: ICT

Pat McFadden: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to the policy paper entitled Transforming for a digital future: 2022 to 2025 roadmap for digital and data, updated on 29 February 2024, what steps his Department has taken to mitigate the risks of red-rated legacy IT systems.

Alex Burghart: The Central Digital and Data Office (CDDO), in the Cabinet Office, has established a programme to support departments managing legacy IT. CDDO has agreed a framework to identify ‘red-rated’ systems, indicating high levels of risk surrounding certain assets within the IT estate. Departments have committed to have remediation plans in place for these systems by next year (2025). It is not appropriate to release sensitive information held about specific red-rated systems, more detailed plans for remediation within departmental IT estates, or information that could indicate which systems are at risk as it may highlight potential security vulnerabilities.

Cabinet Office: Visits Abroad

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answers of 15 April 2024 to Questions 20230 and 20234 on Cabinet Office: Visits Abroad, whether the share of the total flight costs attributable to the Deputy Prime Minister was £14,784.46; and whether the non-flight costs incurred by the Deputy Prime Minister on his visit to New York were £13,915.54.

Alex Burghart: Costs for the trip were outlined in the ministerial travel data entitled Cabinet Office ministerial overseas travel, July to September 2023, published on 21 March 2024. As outlined in that publication, the flight was also used to support regular movement of military personnel between the UK and the USA. These were not included in the number of officials nor in the cost calculations for the trip in order to maintain operational security.

Permanent Court of Arbitration

Patrick Grady: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2024 to Question 18492 on European Court of Human Rights, whether the Prime Minister considers the Permanent Court of Arbitration to be a foreign court.

Patrick Grady: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2024 to Question 18492 on European Court of Human Rights, whether the Prime Minister considers the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea to be a foreign tribunal.

Patrick Grady: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2024 to Question 18492 on European Court of Human Rights, whether the Prime Minister considers the Tribunals of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes to be foreign tribunals when they meet in (a) Washington DC and (b) London.

Patrick Grady: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2024 to Question 18492 on European Court of Human Rights, whether the Prime Minister considers the International Court of Justice to be a foreign court.

Patrick Grady: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March 2024 to Question 18492 on European Court of Human Rights, what assessment the Prime Minister has made of the potential impact of the location of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) on how its jurisdiction applies to (a) the country in which it is based and (b) other countries; and if he will make a comparative assessment of how the jurisdiction of the ECHR applies in (i) France and (ii) the UK.

Alex Burghart: I refer the Hon. Member to the reply to the answer of 18 April 2024, Official Report, PQ 20335. A clear distinction can be made between the domestic courts of the United Kingdom applying our law on one hand, and international (foreign) courts on the other, which hear cases within their often limited jurisdiction, in which at least one party is likely to be a nation state, and which are composed of international panels of judges or arbitrators applying international law, and whose rulings or opinions are often but not always final and binding.

Blood: Contamination

Jessica Morden: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he has taken since receiving Sir Robert Francis KC's infected blood compensation framework study, published on 7 June 2022.

John Glen: Following the publication of Sir Robert’s study, and the Inquiry’s subsequent first interim report in July 2022, the Government made interim payments of £100,000 available to chronic infected beneficiaries and bereaved partners registered with existing support schemes from October 2022. These payments continue to be made to eligible beneficiaries upon being accepted onto the schemes. The Government accepted the moral case for compensation in December 2022, and is committed to responding to the Inquiry’s final report as quickly as possible following on from its publication.

Government Departments: Public Expenditure

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, with reference to his Department's Evaluation Task Force Output and Outcome Indicators March 2024, if he will publish the (a) Evaluation Accelerator Fund projects rated red and (b) Evaluation Task Force priority projects without robust evaluation plans.

John Glen: The Evaluation Task Force (ETF) committed to publicly report on a series of output and outcome indicators in response to recommendations featured in the ‘Evaluating Government Spending’ NAO report in 2022 and the Public Accounts Committee’s recommendation for the ETF to establish quantifiable metrics on the scale and quality of evaluation across government. These indicators of progress can be viewed in the ETF evaluation strategy published in 2022 here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-evaluation-task-force-strategy-2022-2025 The indicators are not wholly controlled or ‘owned’ by the ETF. Driving progress towards the targets outlined in the ETF strategy are dependent on cross-government partners working together to build an improved evaluation ecosystem which creates more and higher quality evaluation in government. The PQ references two indicators: 1.4 Proportion of Evaluation Accelerator Fund projects on track (RAG rated 'Green')1.6 Proportion of ETF priority projects with robust evaluation plans (cumulative) The ETF Output and Outcome Indicators (March 2024) report has also published its Technical Annex alongside the main report. This details the number of projects rated Red, Amber and Green across these portfolios and provides a detailed explanation of how these ratings were assessed. This is summarised in the background section below. Departments and What Works Centres who lead either EAF or priority projects understand they are part of the ETF’s broader portfolio of work and that although regular indicators of evaluation progress in government are published, there have been no plans to publish the details of specific projects as part of the reporting. The ETF has established good working relationships with departments who (particularly within the context of EAF and priority projects) are delivering complex evaluations in high profile policy areas. The departments openly share their work with the ETF and this transparency has enabled the ETF to provide high quality advice and support to teams. Using the information provided to the ETF to specifically publicly name projects, separately from other projects, risks damaging this important working relationship. The ETF instead has been working to ensure transparency on a larger more sustainable scale, for all projects not just ETF priority areas. The Cabinet Office and the ETF will soon be publicly launching the Government Evaluation Registry. The Registry will bring together all planned, live and completed evaluations from Government Departments in a single accessible location, providing an invaluable tool for understanding “what works” in Government. Due to the importance of transparency and improving evaluation across Departments, the Government has decided to make use of the Registry mandatory. As such, Departments and What Works Centres responsible for EAF funded and priority projects will publish plans and findings on the Registry in due course. This will then be available to the public, along with the plans and reports for the rest of the department’s portfolio.

Blood: Contamination

Karl McCartney: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what his planned timetable is for announcing full compensation payments relating to the Infected Blood Inquiry.

John Glen: The Government will respond in full to Sir Brian Langstaff’s recommendations on compensation following the publication of the Inquiry’s final report on 20th May, and we will provide an update to Parliament on next steps within 25 sitting days following this date. Additionally, we will bring forward amendments at Report Stage of the Victims and Prisoners Bill in the Other Place with the intention of speeding up the implementation of the Government’s response to the Infected Blood Inquiry.

Infected Blood Inquiry

Karl McCartney: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what information his Department holds on how the Infected Blood Inquiry calculated its estimate that 30,000 NHS patients were exposed to hepatitis B or C.

John Glen: The Cabinet Office holds no information in relation to the Inquiry's methodology. The process and findings of the independent inquiry are a matter for the Chair, Sir Brian Langstaff.

Department for Transport

Official Cars

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many miles vehicles in the Government Car Service fleet drove in financial years (a) 2021-22, (b) 2022-23 and (c) 2023-24; and how many vehicles were in the fleet at the end of each of those years.

Anthony Browne: Please see below in relation to fleet mileage and numbers. Figures for the fleet mileage for the financial year 2023/2024 are not available. This is due to the legacy reporting system used by GCS no longer being supported by the Department for Transports IT suite. Figures for 2021/2022 and 2022/2023 are available as they have had been produced in previous years. The figures for fleet numbers have been collated manually.  2021/222022/232023/2024Fleet mileage793,836.00838,113.00UnavailableNo. of vehicles87111122  Given the ongoing security context, demand for Ministerial cars has naturally increased. New cars are also purchased before older models are disposed of to ensure operational resilience and we anticipate at least 10 cars will be disposed of in the coming months. Our budget for new cars has remained consistent over recent years and we continue to take into account value for money for the taxpayer, bearing down on costs wherever possible.

Electric Vehicles: Grants

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether annual funding for the plug-in grant for cars has been reallocated to other funding pots since its expiry.

Guy Opperman: This grant closed in 2022, there has been no allocated funding since that point.

Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Fund and Rapid Charging Fund

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will take steps to extend funding for the (a) rapid charging fund and (b) Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Fund beyond April 2025.

Guy Opperman: The Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (LEVI) Fund is providing £381 million funding to support local authorities in England to work with industry and transform the availability of electric vehicle (EV) charging for drivers without off-street parking. On the 6 December, a £70m pilot for the Rapid Charging Fund opened for applications, focused on motorway service areas in England. Alongside the pilot, a consultation on the main fund was also launched. Evidence gathered from the consultation will be used alongside the learning from the RCF pilot in the development of the RCF main fund. The RCF main fund will open in due course. Government will continue to assess whether further support is required to ensure the continued rollout of EV infrastructure.

Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation: Electrification

Bill Esterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to publish the report on the study commissioned his Department on the inclusion of electrification in the renewable transport fuel obligation.

Guy Opperman: Last year the Department commissioned independent research into potential regulation-based options that may be required to support the continued rollout of public electric vehicle chargepoints from mid-2020s, including their opportunities, risks and likely impact. This research is still in progress.

Speed Limits: Exemptions

Jeff Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his planned timetable is for laying the secondary legislation required to commence section 19 of the Road Safety Act 2006.

Guy Opperman: The Department for Transport is currently considering how best to take forward implementation of section 19 of the Road Safety Act 2006.

Taxis: VAT

Mohammad Yasin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions his Department has had with HM Treasury on the proposed consultation into the impact of the July 2023 High Court ruling in Uber Britannia Ltd v Sefton MBC.

Guy Opperman: The Department for Transport and HM Treasury have worked closely on the consultation, which was launched on 18 April, on the impacts that recent High Court rulings on private hire vehicle legislation may have on the sector and its passengers.

Motor Vehicles: Insurance

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of trends in the level of car insurance premiums in the last 12 months.

Guy Opperman: My Department has not made an assessment of the rising cost of motor insurance premiums over the past year. However, officials regularly liaise with representatives of the motor insurance industry on a variety of issues such as the cost of insurance. I will also soon meet with the Economic Secretary to the Treasury, and industry, to discuss this matter further. The Government is determined that insurers should treat customers fairly and firms are required to do so under the Financial Conduct Authority rules. It is the responsibility of individual motor insurers to set their premiums and the terms and conditions of their policies, and the Government does not intervene in or seek to control the market.

Motor Vehicles: Insurance

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has had recent discussions with the Financial Conduct Authority on the regulation of car insurance premiums.

Guy Opperman: The Financial Conduct Authority does not regulate car insurance premiums. However, the Government is determined that insurers should treat customers fairly and firms are required to do so under the FCA rules. Department for Transport officials regularly liaise with representatives of the motor insurance industry on a variety of issues such as the cost of insurance. It is the responsibility of individual motor insurers to set their premiums and the terms and conditions of their policies, and the Government does not intervene in or seek to control the market.

Motorcycles: Driving Tests

Emma Hardy: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent estimate he has made ofthe number of learners waiting for motorcycle practical tests (a) nationally and (b) in Hull West and Hessle constituency; and whether he has made an assessment of the effectiveness of steps taken to reduce the driving test backlog over the last 12 months.

Guy Opperman: As of 12 April 2024, the number of learners waiting for motorcycle practical tests (a) nationally was 25,637 and (b) in Hull West and Hessle it was 141. The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency’s main priority is to reduce practical driving test waiting times, whilst upholding road safety standards. To increase the number of available test slots, it is conducting tests outside of regular hours, including at weekends and on public holidays, and buying back annual leave from driving examiners.

Active Travel and Roads: Finance

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has made an assessment of the potential implications for his policies of findings in SusTrans' Walking and Cycling Index 2023, published in March 2024, relating to people's opinions on relative funding for (a) road building schemes and (b) walking, wheeling, cycling and public transport options.

Guy Opperman: The Department has noted the findings in this report and agrees that it is important that people should be able to choose how they make their everyday journeys. The Government is investing around £3 billion over the current Parliament in schemes to enable more people to choose walking, wheeling and cycling, which is more than any previous Government has invested. The Government also recognises the importance of local bus services and has announced over £4.5 billion to support and improve bus services in England outside London since 2020.

Minibuses: Driving Licences

Dr Thérèse Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether his Department provides grants to (a) social enterprises and (b) charities for the provision of training for D1 licences.

Guy Opperman: The Department makes available over £3 million each year through the Bus Service Operators Grant (BSOG) to community transport operators, who are predominantly charities operating vehicles that require D1 licences. Community transport operators receive £1.60 for every £1 claimed, reflecting the increased costs faced by the sector and supporting them to continue delivering inclusive and accessible transport across the country.

Railways: Safety

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make it his policy to increase staffing levels on trains to improve public safety.

Huw Merriman: The train operating companies, as employers, are responsible for ensuring there are adequate numbers of staff to suit their operational needs, which includes maintaining the safety of the public using their trains. The British Transport Police (BTP) is the national dedicated police force for the railways in England, Scotland and Wales. It also has responsibility for the London Underground, Docklands Light Railway, the Midland Metro tram system, Croydon Tramlink, Tyne and Wear Metro, Glasgow Subway and the IFS Cloud Cable car. We urge all passengers, to please report any incidents to the BTP either via its text-reporting service on 61016, its Railway Guardian App, online via its website, or in an emergency by dialling 999.

Railways: Industrial Disputes

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent negotiations he has had with trade unions on planned train strikes.

Huw Merriman: The Government has no role in negotiations. Negotiations must take place between the employer, which the Rail Delivery Group has done on behalf of the train operating companies (TOC), and the trade union. We remain committed to supporting those who are involved in resolving this dispute so that important workforce reforms can take place, supported by a fair pay deal. ASLEF remains the only TOC in a national level dispute causing disruption to passengers and impacting the economy. We continue to urge them to negotiate with industry.

Railways and Roads: Conflict of Interests

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of guidance issued by his Department to (a) Network Rail, (b) National Highways and (c) the Great British Railways transition team on potential conflicts of interest.

Huw Merriman: The Department for Transport’s (DfT) Arm’s Length Bodies have a duty to manage public money responsibly and effectively and in a transparent way. This includes managing any potential conflicts of interest effectively through the implementation of an effective and appropriate Conflicts of Interest (CoI) policy, in line with the Cabinet Office’s Procurement Policy Note: Applying Exclusions in Public Procurement, Managing Conflicts of Interest and Whistleblowing (PPN 04/21). As the Great British Railways Transition Team (GBRTT) employs people from across the rail industry, DfT’s Rail Reform team has been working closely with them to maintain and improve current information sharing processes, including ensuring NDAs have adequate provisions to protect all parties where potential conflicts of interest exist. This includes ensuring GBRTT have adequate provisions in place when working with Train Operating Companies (TOCs) and contractors.

High Speed 2 Line

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of the cancellation of the northern leg of HS2.

Huw Merriman: The Department is working with HS2 Ltd and its supply chain to assess the cost implications of the cancellation of HS2 Phase 2a and 2b. This work is ongoing and updates will be provided in future Parliamentary Reports on HS2.

European Rail Traffic Management System

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether the European Train Control signalling system is classified as a (a) renewal or (b) enhancement for the purposes of Network Rail’s budget.

Huw Merriman: As per the High Level Output Specification (HLOS), replacing assets at the point of renewal with ETCS (European Train Control System) represents the most cost effective way to transition the network. This is the approach that Network Rail will be using in Control Period 7 (2024-2029) and thus ETCS will be funded via renewals.The exception will be ETCS deployments that are part of wider enhancements (such as Transpennine Route Upgrade) which will primarily be funded via enhancements but may have some renewals funding, for example where assets needed to be renewed anyway.

Railway Stations: Access

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Written Statement of 4 April 2019 on Access for All, HCWS1484, how many and what proportion of the projects awarded funding through the Access for All programme (a) have been and (b) are yet to be completed.

Huw Merriman: Approximately 45% of the current Access for All programme has entered into passenger service, with approximately 55% not yet complete although the majority of these are in construction.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Marine Environment: Investment

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support private investment in ocean recovery.

Rebecca Pow: Ocean conservation and the protection of marine biodiversity is a global challenge and one that is critically underfunded. Through the UK’s £500m UK aid Blue Planet Fund and in line with the 10 Point Plan for Financing Biodiversity and the International Development White Paper, we are supporting innovative projects that aim to attract and scale up private investment in ocean recovery. These initiatives include restoration and protection of blue carbon habitats and increasing coastal community resilience, funded through programmes led by the Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance (£13.9m), the World Bank’s sustainable blue economies programme- PROBLUE (£37.5m), and the Global Fund for Coral Reefs (£33m), amongst others. In June 2023, Lord Benyon hosted a joint UK-GFCR Investors Roundtable event, which showcased the GFCR as a viable investment opportunity and supported investor mobilisation for the GFCR Investment fund. At 28th Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC (COP28), the GFCR Coalition announced the mobilisation of more than $200 million USD as an initial direct investment toward the newly established 2030 Coral Reef Breakthrough targets, these include mobilising $12bn for corals and protecting 125,000 km2 of corals (50% of ~250,000km2 global total) by 2030. As set out in Mobilising Green Investment: 2023 Green Finance Strategy, we are also taking action to meet our target to raise £1bn in private finance into nature’s recovery in England every year by 2030, both on land and at sea.

Recreation Spaces

Dr Thérèse Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what data his Department holds on the number and proportion of people who have access to a good quality (a) green and (b) blue space within 15 minutes' walk of their home, by parliamentary constituency.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what methodology his Department uses to determine the number and proportion of people who have access to a good quality (a) green and (b) blue space within 15 minutes' walk of their home.

Rebecca Pow: The methodology and data we currently use on the number and proportion of people with access to greenspace is taken from Natural England’s Green Infrastructure (GI) Framework analysis. Natural England’s analyses of the total population in England living in close proximity of greenspace are based on the GI Framework’s Accessible Greenspace Standards which use buffers (straight-line distances) between home and greenspace and include three greenspace criteria:People living within 200m of a doorstep greenspace of at least 0.5haPeople living within 300m of a local natural greenspace of at least 2haPeople living within 1km of a neighbourhood natural greenspace of at least 10ha When considered together, these three most local Accessible Greenspace Standards buffers allow us to form a composite picture of access to different sizes of greenspace within a straight-line distance of 1km from home. Natural England’s G3 Indicator report shows that as of October 2021, the proportions of the total population in England living within Accessible Greenspace Standards ‘criteria’ (straight line distances from the boundary of the greenspaces) are:• 1 in 3 people live within 200 metres of a doorstep greenspace of at least 0.5 hectares.• 1 in 4 people live within 300 metres of a local natural greenspace of at least 2 hectares.• 1 in 2 people live within 1 km of a neighbourhood natural greenspace of at least 10 hectares. Our Environmental Improvement Plan commitment to ensure everyone lives within 15 minutes’ walk of a green or blue space focuses on proximity to these spaces from home. Our data gathering therefore focuses on this, rather than by parliamentary constituency. We are currently working to establish a robust baseline of walkability to green and blue space, including working with NE and with the Rivers Trust to create data on blue space access points. In August we will publish an official statistic in development on walkability within England to the nearest green space. This will use network analysis to calculate travel time/ distance rather than straight-line distances, and enhanced use of data on the rights-of-way network. For full details see https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/announcements/access-to-green-space-in-england.

Swans: Animal Breeding

Ruth Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of climate change on the breeding habits of swans.

Rebecca Pow: There has been no assessment of the impact of climate change on the breeding habits of the mute swan, which is the only UK breeding swan species.

Plastics: Treaties

Claire Hanna: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent progress he has made in negotiations of a new international, legally binding plastics treaty.

Robbie Moore: The United Nations Environment Assembly Resolution 5/14 set an ambitious timetable for the agreement of a new international, legally binding plastics treaty by end of 2024. The fourth round of negotiations (INC-4) will take place in Ottawa from 23 – 29 April which will continue discussions on the draft treaty text. The UK is a founding member of the High Ambition Coalition to End Plastic Pollution, a group of over 60 countries calling for an ambitious and effective treaty. The UK has been a vocal proponent of a strong and comprehensive agreement that covers the whole lifecycle of plastics, including restraining and reducing the production and consumption of plastic to sustainable levels, promoting a circular economy for plastic, managing plastic waste in an environmentally sound and safe manner, and preventing and reducing releases of plastics into the environment. The Government is committed to securing an agreement on the text by the end of the year and is working closely with other Parties and stakeholders to facilitate progress at INC-4. In particular, the UK co-led with Brazil an informal, technical work programme to support continued dialogues on how to identify chemicals and polymers of concern, and problematic plastic products within the treaty.

Marine Environment

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to (a) preserve and (b) expand blue carbon habitats.

Rebecca Pow: The Government recognises the important role that blue carbon habitats such as saltmarsh and seagrass can play in climate change mitigation, adaptation and resilience. These richly biodiverse habitats also provide a crucial buffer from coastal flooding, benefit fish stocks and improve local water quality. The UK is a global leader in ocean protection and we have taken a number of steps to support blue carbon habitats. In England, we have established a comprehensive network of 181 Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), which cover the majority of our saltmarsh and seagrass habitats. MPAs are intended to protect designated features listed within the MPA target. While blue carbon habitats may not always be an explicitly designated feature, MPA protection may still yield benefits. Our focus is now on ensuring that these MPAs are effectively protected to allow the designated features to achieve favourable condition. The first three Highly Protected Marine Area (HPMAs) designations in English waters came into force in summer 2023. Two of the three designated sites, Allonby Bay and North East of Farnes Deep, contain blue carbon habitats. Defra is exploring identifying additional candidate HPMA sites. The Environment Agency’s Restoring Meadow, Marsh and Reef (ReMeMaRe) initiative is working to restore seagrass meadows, saltmarsh and native oyster reefs. Working in partnership with environmental non-government organisations, industry, community groups, and academia, the initiative aims to identify innovative funding opportunities, streamline regulatory processes, build capacity and share knowledge with partners to facilitate a larger programme of restoration. Defra has set up the UK Blue Carbon Evidence Partnership in partnership with the Devolved Administrations to address evidence gaps that currently prevent the inclusion of blue carbon habitats in the UK Greenhouse Gas Inventory (GHGI). Inclusion of these habitats in the GHGI will allow blue carbon to be marketed and traded as a carbon offset, leveraging private investment into these vital natural carbon stores.

Marine Management Organisation: Licensing

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many times the Marine Management Organisation has held a public inquiry to consider an application for a marine licence; and what the reason was in each case.

Rebecca Pow: Once, since the establishment of the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) in 2010. On 26 May 2011, the MMO called a public inquiry to be held for two marine licences related to the construction and dredging associated with a temporary jetty to support the development of Hinkley Point C nuclear power station. The inquiry focussed on several matters including procedural matters related to marine licences and development consent orders, removal of the jetty, and environmental matters.

Department for Work and Pensions

Personal Independence Payment

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many applicants for Personal Independence Payment had not received a decision on the first day of each month in 2023.

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people were awaiting a decision on their Personal Independence Payment application on the first day of each month in 2022.

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people were awaiting a decision on their Personal Independence Payment application on the first day of each month in 2021.

Mims Davies: The table below gives the number of outstanding PIP cases on the first of each month from 2021 to 2023. Claims are considered outstanding when the claim has been registered but a decision has not yet been made by a Case Manager on whether to award PIP. MonthOutstanding casesJan-21220,000Feb-21233,000Mar-21237,000Apr-21252,000May-21265,000Jun-21281,000Jul-21296,000Aug-21297,000Sep-21302,000Oct-21308,000Nov-21316,000Dec-21312,000Jan-22301,000Feb-22308,000Mar-22307,000Apr-22303,000May-22295,000Jun-22300,000Jul-22299,000Aug-22284,000Sep-22282,000Oct-22284,000Nov-22275,000Dec-22259,000Jan-23237,000Feb-23232,000Mar-23245,000Apr-23273,000May-23286,000Jun-23301,000Jul-23298,000Aug-23286,000Sep-23281,000Oct-23291,000Nov-23287,000Dec-23276,000 Notes:- Source: PIP Atomic Data Store;- Figures are rounded to the nearest 1,000;- Figures are for England and Wales only;- These figures include claims made under normal rules and special rules for terminal illness and include both new claims and Disability Living Allowance (DLA) to PIP reassessment claims.

Access to Work Programme

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many applicants for Access to Work support had not received a decision on (a) 1 January, (b) 1 February and (c) 1 March 2024.

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many applicants for Access to Work support had not received an assessment on 1 December 2022.

Mims Davies: The number of applications awaiting a decision for Access to Work on the requested dates were as follows. Figures have been steadily increasing due to the rise in the volume of application received. As of 1st January 2024 – 24,874As of 1st February 2024 – 26,812As of 1st March 2024 – 29,864 There were 25,292 Access to Work applications awaiting a decision as of 1st December 2022. Please note that the data supplied is derived from unpublished management information, which was collected for internal Departmental use only, and have not been quality assured to National Statistics or Official Statistics publication standard. They should therefore be treated with caution.

Personal Independence Payment: Telephone Services

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of reducing the volume of calls to the Personal Independence Payment helpline by extending to two months the time limit for returning Payment (a) application and (b) review forms.

Mims Davies: Claimants are advised that should they require more time to complete the “How your disability affects you” questionnaire and award review forms they can ask for additional time to do so. The sooner these forms are completed the sooner the Department can reach a decision on their claim or award review.

Employment and Support Allowance: Publicity

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to promote the Employment and Support Allowance.

Mims Davies: The Department for Work and Pensions signposts to Employment and Support Allowance through GOV.UK, helplines, GP surgeries, local libraries, and other support services such as Citizens Advice. There are also benefit calculators on the GOV.UK website which is available for those who wish to find out what support may be available to them. In addition, the Department for Work and Pensions is constantly working to improve the way it communicates information about benefits and other services to the general public.

Motability

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make it his policy to allow access to the Motability Scheme for (a) claimants of (i) Personal Independence Payment with standard rate mobility and (ii) Disability Living Allowance with low rate mobility, (b) claimants in the process of applying for Personal Independence Payment for up to 18 months to provide time for any appeals and (c) Blue Badge holders.

Mims Davies: To be eligible to join the Motability Scheme claimants must be in receipt of the higher-rate mobility component of Disability Living Allowance, the enhanced-rate mobility component of Personal Independence Payment, Armed Forces Independence Payment or War Pensioners’ Mobility Supplement. Customers in receipt of one of these benefits, may then choose to join the Motability scheme. If the person is not receiving one of the above benefits, they will not qualify for the Motability scheme. In line with legislative requirements the gateway for the transfer of benefits is dependent upon entitlement to specific mobility components and targets support to those with the most severe mobility needs. There are currently no plans to look at expanding the eligibility criteria for the Motability Scheme.

Medical Certificates

Liz Kendall: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, on what evidential basis he stated to The Telegraph on 20 March 2024 that GPs were signing people off work for feeling down and bluesy.

Mims Davies: In his interview with The Telegraph on 20 March 2024, the Secretary of State set out the challenges we are facing with tackling long-term sickness related economic inactivity, particularly due to mental health. The Secretary of State gave an example of why someone might go to their GP for a fit note, for a mental health condition. The figure that 94% of fit notes issued were ‘Not fit for work’ refers to all fit notes issued by GP practices in England between October 2022 - September 2023. Of the fit notes issued by GP practices in England between October 2022 – September 2023 with a known diagnosis, 37% are for mental and behavioural disorders. This Government is committed to reforming the fit note to ensure that people get timely access to work and health support, in turn reducing sickness absence and improving health outcomes.

Personal Independence Payment: Medical Examinations

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether people in receipt of a letter notifying them of a postponed PIP reassessment are counted as awaiting a PIP (a) assessment and (b) reassessment.

Mims Davies: There are still some claimants in receipt of Adult DLA who are yet to be reassessed. These cases are classed as awaiting PIP ‘reassessment’. DLA payments will continue until they are invited to claim PIP, and we have not contacted anyone on DLA to inform them of any postponement. There are claimants who have made a new claim to PIP but not yet received a decision. A proportion of these will be with the Assessment Provider and counted as awaiting ‘assessment’. No one in this category would receive a letter indicating their assessments is postponed, unless there are unusual circumstances, and the Provider needs to re-arrange a specific appointment for example. There are claimants already in receipt of PIP whose award is due to end (or has ended). Some cases are yet to be reviewed and would be counted as awaiting ‘review’. Some cases have been referred to the Assessment Provider and would therefore be counted as awaiting ‘assessment’. Where appropriate, we write to claimants to let them know the process is ongoing and we are extending their award, but we do not inform claimants that their review or assessment is postponed.

Employment and Support Allowance

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has made an estimate of how many people entitled to the Employment and Support Allowance did not claim it in (a) 2018, (b) 2019, (c) 2020 and (d) 2021.

Mims Davies: Estimates for the number of entitled non-recipients and caseload take-up are available for income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) and Income Support (IS) up to financial year 2018/19. These can be found here. Figures for 2018/19 were affected by no new claims for income-related ESA and IS from December 2018 as a result of Universal Credit rollout. No figures have been published for ESA/IS since 2018/19 due to the roll out of Universal Credit. No estimates of the volume of entitled non-recipients of New Style (contributory) ESA have been made.

Personal Independence Payment: Appeals

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of paying people who are waiting for the outcome of their Personal Independence Payment appeal at the rate they received before their last decision.

Mims Davies: Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is not an income replacement benefit. It is paid to help with the additional costs that arise from long term health conditions or disability where they impact on the activities set out in legislation. Claimants are assessed against the legislative criteria and a decision on entitlement is made by a DWP decision maker.In line with the legislative requirement, applicable to most social security benefits, we continue to apply the latest decision on a PIP award until such time as a new decision is made. Payment of PIP after a claim has been disallowed, or at a rate higher than the latest decision whilst an individual is waiting for an appeal hearing could lead to inappropriate expenditure of public funds. If a subsequent first-tier tribunal decides to reinstate PIP, or give a higher award, then the Department will backdate any payments due, in line with the new decision.

Personal Independence Payment: Telephone Services

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department has made an estimate of the proportion of people phoning the Personal Independence Payment helpline asking for an extension on the deadline to return their Payment form in each of the last six months..

Mims Davies: No estimate has been made, as this information is not held.

Employment and Support Allowance

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending the eligibility National Insurance criteria for Employment and Support Allowance to people who have paid National Insurance contributions over two full tax years in their lives.

Mims Davies: New Style Employment and Support Allowance (NS ESA) is a benefit for individuals with a limited capability to work based on the individual’s recent National Insurance (NI) record. Normally, to be entitled to NS ESA, a claimant has to satisfy two NI conditions:  to have worked and paid enough NI contributions in one of the two tax years prior to claiming NS ESA for at least 26 weeks; and to have either paid, or been credited with, enough NI contributions in both of the two tax years prior to claiming NS ESA that is at least 50 times the minimum threshold. Looking at the most recent tax years, ensures people have a recent record of paid contributions and therefore a close link with the labour market.

Employment and Support Allowance: Mobility

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of extending the Personal Independence Payment planning and following a journey descriptors to include (a) access to toilets and (b) fear of falling over due to mobility issues.

Mims Davies: Personal Independence Payment (PIP) was developed in collaboration with independent specialists in health, social care and disability, including disabled people, and through public consultation between 2010-2012 prior to its introduction in 2013. This comprehensive consultation process informed the development of the PIP assessment criteria, as set out in legislation. There are currently no plans to change the criteria. Activity 11 was designed to assess barriers to mobility that individuals may face that are associated with mental, cognitive, intellectual or sensory ability, as opposed to physical ability. This includes whether people can leave home to make journeys and whether they are able to plan and successfully follow those journeys. With regard to access to toilets, any continence issues would be considered separately under activity 5, and mobility issues under activity 12. Fear of falling down due to mobility issues could be considered under activity 11 if it is sufficient to impact on a claimant’s ability to leave home, plan or follow journeys as per the PIP regulations.

Work Capability Assessment

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to his Departments consultation outcome entitled Work Capability Assessment: activities and descriptors, published 5 September 2023, how many cases were reviewed as part of the research.

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to his Departments consultation outcome entitled Work Capability Assessment: activities and descriptors, published 5 September 2023, how his Department selected the cases to be reviewed.

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to his Departments consultation outcome entitled Work Capability Assessment: activities and descriptors, published 5 September 2023, what the (a) grade and (b) job titles were of the staff who undertook the research exercise.

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to his Departments consultation outcome entitled Work Capability Assessment: activities and descriptors, published 5 September 2023, for what reason the results of the research exercise have not been published.

Mims Davies: In November 2023, we announced changes to the Work Capability Assessment (WCA) criteria. The full response to the public consultation on these changes can be found here.We do not know what “research exercise” the questions are referring to but have interpreted these questions to be about internal policy development undertaken before and during the consultation exercise on changes to the WCA. This work was undertaken by a variety of staff from a mix of grades and job titles, including Senior Civil Servants. We will publish an Impact Assessment in due course.We undertook considerable engagement during the consultation period and received over 1300 written responses. We listened carefully to what people told us and took their views into account when deciding which changes to take forward. We took care to ensure the views of disabled people and people with health conditions, as well as the views of the charities, groups and organisations representing and supporting them, were considered. We also engaged directly with external clinical experts and employers.

Carer's Allowance: Overpayments

Margaret Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many overpayments of Carer’s Allowance there have been in relation to the earnings conditions in each of the last three years.

Paul Maynard: Claimants have a responsibility to ensure they are entitled to benefits they claim and to inform the DWP of any changes in their circumstances that could impact their award. For Carer’s Allowance, eligibility is partly dependent upon claimants earning £151 or less a week after tax, National Insurance and allowable expenses. Where overpayments do occur, the Department has a duty to the taxpayer to protect public funds and to ask for money to be paid back. However, we seek to do so without causing excessive hardship. We remain committed to working with anyone who is struggling with their repayment terms and will always look to negotiate sustainable and affordable repayment plans. Our most recent statistics show that Carer's Allowance overpayments relating to earnings/employment represents 2.1% of our £3.3bn Carer’s Allowance expenditure.  The information requested has been provided in the table below. Financial Year2021/222022/232023/24Volume of Carer’s Allowance (CA) Debts36.1k30.7k34.5k The above data has been sourced from internal DWP management information, which is intended only to help the Department to manage its business. It is not intended for publication and has not been subject to the same quality assurance checks applied to our published official statistics.

Carer's Allowance: Overpayments

Margaret Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many debts of overpayments of Carer's Allowance his Department was seeking to recover in value brackets (a) £0.01 - £500, (b) £500.01 - £1,000, (c) £1,000.01 - £5,000, (d) £5,000.01 - £20,000 and (e) over £20,000 as of 6 April 2024.

Paul Maynard: Claimants have a responsibility to ensure they are entitled to benefits they claim and to inform the DWP of any changes in their circumstances that could impact their award. For Carer’s Allowance, eligibility is partly dependent upon claimants earning £151 or less a week after tax, National Insurance and allowable expenses. Where overpayments do occur, the Department has a duty to the taxpayer to protect public funds and to ask for money to be paid back. However, we seek to do so without causing excessive hardship. We remain committed to working with anyone who is struggling with their repayment terms and will always look to negotiate sustainable and affordable repayment plans. Our most recent statistics show that Carer's Allowance overpayments relating to earnings/employment represents 2.1% of our £3.3bn Carer’s Allowance expenditure.  The information requested has been provided in the table below.Carer’s Allowance Debt Value GroupingVolume of Carer’s Allowance Debts£0.01 - £500.0061.9k£500.01 - £1000.0029.7k£1000.01 - £5000.0053.2k£5000.01 - £20,000.0011.3kOver £20,000.000.3kTotal156.3k The above data has been sourced from internal DWP management information, which is intended only to help the Department to manage its business. It is not intended for publication and has not been subject to the same quality assurance checks applied to our published official statistics. Data is taken as a snapshot as at 03/04/2024, the closest date we can obtain to 06/04/2024.

Carer's Allowance: Overpayments

Margaret Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many overpayments of carer’s allowance of (a) £0.01 - £500, (b) £500.01 - £1,000, (c) £1,000.01 - £5,000, (d) £5,000.01 - £20,000 and (e) more than £20,000 were made in the (i) 2021-22, (ii) 2022-23 and (iii) 2023-24 financial years.

Paul Maynard: Claimants have a responsibility to ensure they are entitled to benefits they claim and to inform the DWP of any changes in their circumstances that could impact their award. For Carer’s Allowance, eligibility is partly dependent upon claimants earning £151 or less a week after tax, National Insurance and allowable expenses. Where overpayments do occur, the Department has a duty to the taxpayer to protect public funds and to ask for money to be paid back. However, we seek to do so without causing excessive hardship. We remain committed to working with anyone who is struggling with their repayment terms and will always look to negotiate sustainable and affordable repayment plans. Our most recent statistics show that Carer's Allowance overpayments relating to earnings/employment represents 2.1% of our £3.3bn Carer’s Allowance expenditure. The information requested has been provided in the table below. Carer’s Allowance Debt Value Grouping2021/222022/232023/24£0.01 - £500.0026.4k20.3k28.0k£500.01 - £1000.0012.2k11.4k11.9k£1000.01 - £5000.0018.4k16.4k18.6k£5000.01 - £20,000.002.9k1.3k1.3kOver £20,000.000.1k0.1k0.0kTotal60.1k49.5k59.9k The above data has been sourced from internal DWP management information, which is intended only to help the Department to manage its business. It is not intended for publication and has not been subject to the same quality assurance checks applied to our published official statistics.

Department for Work and Pensions: ICT

Pat McFadden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the policy paper entitled Transforming for a digital future: 2022 to 2025 roadmap for digital and data, updated on 29 February 2024, what steps his Department has taken to mitigate the risks of red-rated legacy IT systems.

Paul Maynard: DWP has funded and resourced a dedicated Legacy Technical Debt Working Group within DWP. This group managed the population and ongoing accuracy of Legacy IT System Risk Score Cards. The information recorded includes plans for mitigating key risks which are assessed ahead of each fiscal planning round to bid for funds to implement mitigating measures.

State Retirement Pensions: Women

David Linden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 15 April 2024 to Question 20383 on State Retirement Pensions: Women, whether his Department received the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman's provisional views on injustice and remedy experienced due to maladministration in communication about the 1995 Pensions Act in November 2023.

Paul Maynard: DWP received the PHSO’s provisional views for comment in November 2023.

Home Office

Asylum: Rwanda

Dame Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to Qq 5 to 13 of the oral evidence given by his Department's Permanent Secretary to the Committee of Public Accounts on 15 April 2024, HC 639, when he plans to publish accounting officer advice relating to the (a) Illegal Migration Act 2023 and (b) Safety of Rwanda Bill.

Michael Tomlinson: As the Permanent Secretary stated during the Public Accounts Committee evidence session on 15 April 2024, in his capacity as Accounting Officer (AO) he keeps all assessments under review, including where this relates to the Illegal Migration Act and the Safety of Rwanda Bill. In line with the guidance in Managing Public Money, the Department publishes summary AO assessments on projects that are part of the Government Major Projects Portfolio, once they receive Outline Business Case stage. The summary assessments referred to will be handled in line with due process.

Slavery: Victims

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the national referral mechanism.

Laura Farris: The Government is focussed on improving National Referral Mechanism (NRM) decision-making timescales. We have seen an unprecedented increase in the volume of referrals in the NRM; a 625% rise between 2014 and 2022. In 2023, 17,004 potential victims of modern slavery were referred to the Home Office, the highest annual number since the NRM began in 2009. Despite this, since January 2023 the number of decisions outstanding has been coming down for the first time ever, showing that what we are doing is working.The Government is committed to ensuring that genuine victims are identified and introduced legislation under the Nationality and Borders Act to ensure that there is a robust system which supports victims and reduces the opportunity for misuse.The Home Office holds all policies and procedures under review to ensure they are effective in delivering the aims of the government. We continue to monitor the effectiveness of the NRM accordingly.

Domestic Abuse: Reform

Apsana Begum: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the statement entitled Domestic Abuse Commissioner responds to Criminal Justice reforms in the King’s Speech, published on 7 November 2023, what plans he has to bring forward legislative proposals to ensure perpetrators of domestic abuse can be removed from the police force and police staff as well as changes to police regulations to remove warrant cards from police officers under investigation for violence against women and girls offences.

Laura Farris: Existing Regulations provide Chief Constables with a power to suspend officers under investigation, including where it is in the public interest to do so.In February, Government announced that it will legislate for automatic suspension in cases where an officer is charged with an indictable only offence, and a presumption of suspension where an officer is charged with an either way offence. When suspended, an officer is suspended from the Office of Constable and its associated powers. Forces should remove officers’ warrant cards from them where this happens.The Government is further introducing measures to strengthen the system for removing officers who are not fit to serve. These include a presumption of dismissal where officers are found to have committed gross misconduct and a clarified route to remove officers who fail to hold and maintain vetting.

Hate Crime and Racial Discrimination

Apsana Begum: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the risk of the far right and racists targeting (a) Poplar and Limehouse constituency and (b) other diverse areas; and what steps he is taking to protect communities from hate (i) crimes and (ii) speech.

Laura Farris: We have a robust legislative framework in place to respond to hate crimes which target race and religion and expect the police to fully investigate these appalling offences and work with the Crown Prosecution Service to ensure perpetrators are brought to justice. Our priority is to get more police onto our streets, cut crime, protect the public and bring more criminals to justice. We are supporting the police by providing them with the resources they need. Part of this necessitates police recruitment and training - there are now over 149,000 officers in England and Wales, which is higher than the previous peak in March 2010 before the Police Uplift Programme. Funding for the Metropolitan Police Service will be up to £3.5bn in 2024/25, an increase of up to £125.8m when compared to 2023/24. As of 30 September 2023, the Metropolitan Police Service has over 35,000 officers (35,006).We are committed to protecting all communities from hate crime. In 2023/24, the Home Office is providing up to £50.9 million to protect faith communities. This includes £18 million through the Jewish Community Protective Security Grant, £29.4 million through the new Protective Security for Mosques scheme and a scheme for Muslim faith schools, and £3.5 million for the places of worship of other (non-Muslim and non-Jewish) faiths.The Government continues to fund True Vision, an online hate crime reporting portal designed so that victims of all forms of hate crime do not have to visit a police station to report. We also fund the National Online Hate Crime Hub, a central capability designed to provide expert advice to support individual local police forces in dealing with online hate crime.

Asylum: Housing

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many properties in Lincolnshire other than hotels Serco have operated for housing asylum seekers since 2020.

Tom Pursglove: Data on the number of supported asylum seekers in accommodation (including in contingency hotels and other contingency accommodation) is published in table Asy_D11 here: Immigration system statistics data tables - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

UK Border Force: Training

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what training his Department provides to Border Force staff to prevent discrimination.

Tom Pursglove: Diversity & Inclusion is woven into the Foundation Immigration and Customs Training undertaken by all Border Force officers. The course teaches officers how to deal with the travelling public in a professional and courteous manner. Border Force staff also undertake the online Public Sector Equality Duty course, ensuring an understanding of their responsibilities as defined by the Equalities Act 2010.

Horticulture: Seasonal Workers

Ian Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer of 23 February 2024 to Written Question 14388 on Horticulture, Seasonal Workers, if he will publish the guidance that sets out the requirement for workers to receive a minimum of 32 hours pay for each week of their stay in the UK, regardless of whether work is available.

Tom Pursglove: The requirement for Seasonal Workers to receive a minimum of 32 hours pay for each week of their stay in the UK is already set out in paragraph SAW4.1(g)(i) of Appendix Temporary Work of the Immigration Rules.

Refugees: Afghanistan

Stephen Kinnock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the oral contribution of the then Minister for Immigration of 17 October 2023, Official Report, column 54WH, what recent progress the Government has made on establishing a specific route to family reunion for Afghan nationals who are family members of individuals resettled to the UK under pathway 1 of the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme.

Tom Pursglove: For those evacuated from Afghanistan under Pathway 1 of the Afghan Citizens Resettlement Scheme (ACRS) without their immediate family members, the Home Secretary has committed to establishing a route for separated families to be reunited in the first half of this year.Further details will be provided in due course.

Asylum: Applications

Dame Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what progress his Department has made on processing asylum applications for people who arrived in the UK between 7 March and 19 July 2023.

Tom Pursglove: In 2023 we met the Prime Minister's pledge to clear the legacy backlog of asylum cases made before 28 June 2022. The Home Office is now prioritising claims (lodged on or after 28 June 2022).These are being considered under provisions in the Nationality and Borders Act 2022. It is only right that we consider the oldest claims first.Our priority is to consider claims as efficiently as possible, in order to process claims efficiently, and reduce the number of people on asylum support, in turn reducing the burden on taxpayers.

Asylum: Rwanda

Mr Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with which airlines his Department has held discussions on the Rwanda scheme in the last six months.

Michael Tomlinson: The Department engages with commercial partners where required to deliver on its responsibilities. The details of any such discussions are commercially sensitive and therefore we will not be providing a running commentary on them.

Asylum: Deportation

Dame Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of people who have claimed asylum since 20 July 2023 will be subject to the duty to remove imposed by the Illegal Migration Act.

Michael Tomlinson: The Illegal Migration Act was introduced on 7th of March 2023 and received Royal Assent on 20 July 2023. Individuals who entered or arrived illegally from 20 July 2023 will be subject to the duty to remove (section 2 of the Illegal Migration Act) once commenced.Once the act is commenced, official numbers will be available.Official statistics published by the Home Office are kept under review in line with the code of practice for statistics, taking into account a number of factors including user needs, as well as quality and availability of data. The Government’s published data on illegal migration (available here: Statistics relating to Illegal Migration - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)).The Government’s priority is to deter individuals from making dangerous, illegal, and unnecessary journeys to the UK.

Migrant Workers: Fisheries

Claire Hanna: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he has had recent discussions with Cabinet colleagues on how his Department can take steps to help tackle labour shortages in the fishing industry.

Claire Hanna: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of his Department's policies on tackling labour shortages in the fishing industry.

Tom Pursglove: The Skilled Worker route has a number of eligible occupations linked to the fishing sector, and the sector also benefits from a generous package of support provided by the Home Office when it comes to making visa applications.Nevertheless, labour shortages cannot be solved through the immigration system alone and there is regular engagement between departments when developing policy. We will continue to strike the balance between reducing overall net migration and ensuring that businesses have the skills they need to support economic growth.

Electronic Travel Authorisations

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate he has made of the potential impact of the introduction of Electronic Travel Authorisation on transit passenger volumes.

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will reconsider the requirement for airside transit passengers to obtain an Electronic Travel Authorisation to travel through UK airports.

Tom Pursglove: Electronic Travel Authorisations deliver important security benefits. A blanket exemption to the ETA requirement for passengers transiting airside would fundamentally undermine the rationale of the scheme by creating a permission free route of travel into the UK which would be open to abuse.The process for obtaining an ETA is quick and light touch, and the cost (£10 per application) is minimal compared to the overall cost of international travel. An ETA will be valid for two years, or until the expiry of the passport used to apply, and can be used for multiple trips during this period.We will keep our position under review to monitor the impact on transit as the scheme is rolled out.

Police Stations: Concrete

Mr Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many police stations have been tested for reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete.

Mr Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many police stations has reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete been identified in.

Chris Philp: The police are operationally independent and therefore it is the individual responsibility of each police force to manage their estate and ensure it is compliant with the relevant legislation. This includes duties to maintain a safe workplace, as set out in relevant health and safety legislation.Last year the National Police Estates Group, working with Home Office officials, conducted a stocktake of all police forces in England and Wales regarding the presence of Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC) across their respective estates. This identified a small number of forces with instances of RAAC, most relating to single building locations. All have reported that remedial action has been taken to mitigate potential risk.

Migrant Workers: Large Goods Vehicle Drivers

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of including HGV drivers as (a) an eligible occupation for a skilled worker visa and (b) on the immigration salary list.

Liz Saville Roberts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of introducing a seasonal visa scheme for qualified HGV drivers.

Tom Pursglove: The occupation of HGV driver does not meet the requirements of the Skilled Worker visa route.The Government intend to commission the Migration Advisory Committee to undertake a full review of the Immigration Salary List. The Government will carefully consider their recommendations once received, should they make one regarding HGV drivers.The Government regularly monitors labour market data to review the labour needed in different sectors, however there are no plans to extend the scope of the Seasonal Worker route.

Department for Energy Security and Net Zero

Electricity Interconnectors

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how many gigawatt hours of electricity has been imported by individual interconnectors since 2019; and what proportion of total electricity output was generated by interconnectors in (i) 2020, (ii) 2021, (ii) 2022 and (iv) 2023.

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how many gigawatt hours of electricity was imported in February.

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, how many gigawatt hours of electricity was exported via interconnectors in the last 12 months.

Amanda Solloway: UK electricity imports from 2019 to 2023 via each interconnector are presented in the following table, in gigawatt hours (GWh): CountryInterconnector20192020202120222023FranceIFA 111,87510,41210,1381,1167,028 IFA 2xx5,0141,2463,825 ElectraLinkxxx3744,649NetherlandsBritNed6,0494,6744,3413,6104,265IrelandEast West1,2381,600538990239 NI to Ireland302321325336213BelgiumNemo5,0915,3846,9953,2303,986NorwayNorth Sea Linkxx1,3934,5478,945DenmarkVikingxxxx64Total 24,556  22,391  28,743  15,451  33,212  The share of the UK’s gross electricity supply (generation plus imports, excluding exports) supplied via interconnectors each year was: (i) 2020 6.6%, (ii) 2021 8.5%, (iii) 2022 4.6%, (iv) 2023 10.4%. 2023 data is provisional. Final figures will be published in the Digest of UK Energy Statistics at the end of July 2024. In February 2024, the UK imported 3,696 GWh of electricity. In 2023, 9,499 GWh of electricity was exported from the UK via interconnectors. This compares to 20,793 GWh in 2022 when the UK was a net exporter of electricity for the first time in 40 years. Source: National Grid and EirGrid data.

Business Premises: Carbon Emissions

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, with reference to the 2023 UK greenhouse gas emissions, provisional figures, published on 28 March 2024, what assessment she has made of the reasons for the increase in emissions from commercial buildings since 1990; and what steps her Department is taking to help reduce such emissions.

Amanda Solloway: Between 1990 and 2023, provisional statistics show total greenhouse gas emissions from the buildings and product use sectors have fallen by an estimated 28%. However, in the same time period, emissions from commercial buildings have risen by 3% largely due to the use of natural gas for heating. To address this issue, the UK Government is working with industry to understand how to decarbonise commercial buildings in an affordable and appropriate manner, including through supporting energy efficiency improvements, developing the market for heat pumps, and developing heat network capacity. This approach is detailed in the Heat and Buildings Strategy, which can be accessed here.

Energy: Price Caps

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whether she has had recent discussions with consumer rights groups on the potential introduction of a more dynamic energy price cap.

Amanda Solloway: The Government is seeking views on how default tariffs should support households in the future https://www.gov.uk/government/calls-for-evidence/default-energy-tariffs-for-households-call-for-evidence. Alongside this Ofgem are seeking views on how price protections could apply in future, considering innovations such as time of use tariffs www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications/ofgem-launches-discussion-future-price-cap. As part of these discussions the Government is meeting stakeholders, including those from consumer rights groups to seek their thoughts on options for the price cap going forward.

Ministry of Justice

Ministry of Justice: ICT

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the policy paper entitled Transforming for a digital future: 2022 to 2025 roadmap for digital and data, updated on 29 February 2024, what steps his Department has taken to mitigate the risks of red-rated legacy IT systems used in (a) his Department and (b) HM Courts and Tribunals Service.

Mike Freer: We continue to assess our most critical services using the CDDO legacy IT framework. Now that funding has been secured, we are designing phased plans to mitigate risks for the red-rated services identified in the previous assessment. One of the red-rated services has had technical risks mitigated by being migrated to the MoJ's modernisation platform. Additionally, we are continually improving our overall risk management and mitigation approaches. Within HMCTS, services have also been assessed against the framework, and we are continuing with the delivery of the Decommissioning and Legacy Risk Mitigation (DLRM) programme that is addressing these risks. DLRM is a SR21-funded, Government Major Project Portfolio programme specifically focussed on legacy system risks and is decommissioning, replacing, or moving them onto secure, modern, cloud-based environments.

Courts: Buildings

Mr Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, in how many court buildings in England and Wales reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete has been identified.

Mike Freer: Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete (RAAC) has been identified in 10 court buildings out of 329 operational court and tribunal buildings.Five are deemed safe and remain fully operational, three have temporarily closed whilst work is taking place to remove RAAC. Two sites in Blackpool, will not reopen and their work has been relocated to other sites in Lancashire until the new court centre in Blackpool opens in 2026.The safety of staff, judiciary and court users is our top priority, and we will continue to regularly monitor and survey our estate and take action where necessary based on professional advice.

Sexual Offences: Convictions

Dame Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have been convicted under section 53 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 in each year since 2010.

Laura Farris: The Ministry of Justice holds data on the number of offenders convicted under section 53 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003, covering the period requested. This is publicly available and can be obtained through the Outcomes by Offence Data tool, using HO offence code: 02418 – Controlling a prostitute for gain.The information is published quarterly as part of the Criminal Justice System statistics.

Women and Equalities

Members: Correspondence

John Penrose: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, when she plans to reply to the correspondence from the hon. Member for Weston-super-Mare of (a) 11 January 2024 and (b) 20 February 2024 on behalf of a constituent on self-identifying gender.

Stuart Andrew: We thank the honourable Member for Weston-super-Mare for highlighting these two lettersand apologise for the delay in responding. A response has been issued and should be withthe honourable Member now as of 26/03/2024.

Ministry of Defence

Armed Forces: Ethnic Groups

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, for what reason there is no armed forces recruitment target for ethnic minorities.

Dr Andrew Murrison: Whilst Defence has not set hard targets for the recruitment of ethnic minority personnel for the Armed Forces, we have set internally published levels of ambition to increase the recruitment and representation of underrepresented groups, including ethnic minorities. The purpose of these levels of ambition is to act as a catalyst for innovation and activity, and to provide challenge and stretch to existing processes and approaches.Defence has committed to improving the recruitment of ethnic minority personnel into the Armed Forces and is engaged in a wide range of activities to promote better understanding and enhance engagement with ethnic minority communities, reviewing Armed Forces recruitment processes and delivering more targeted marketing and communications towards potential ethnic minority applicants.

Armed Forces: Women

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what progress his Department has made on their target for women to account for 30% of personnel recruited by 2030.

Dr Andrew Murrison: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 11 December 2023 to Question 4844. In the 12 months to 30 September 2023, the proportion of female intake was 12.3% and we hope to continue to work towards the target year on year. Armed Forces; Women (docx, 17.7KB)

Air Force: Training

Nick Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 16 April 2024 to Question 20584 on Air Force: Training, what constitutes a Front Line Operational Conversion Unit; what the average cost of such a Unit was in each year since 2018-19; and how many such Units the RAF had in each such year.

Leo Docherty: Operational Conversion Units (OCU) support operational output through type specific training on front line aircraft for aircrew, engineers and other ground personnel as required. They also provide refresher training for personnel who have previously operated the aircraft type and are returning to the type following other tours of duty in the wider Service. The average costs of Operational Conversion Units are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Between 2018 and 2023 there were five OCUs. In 2023 a sixth OCU was formed.

Air Force: Training

Nick Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 16 April 2024 to Question 20584 on Air Force: Training, how many RAF pilots completed their phase 2 training but did not complete training to the level required to operate Front Line Operational Conversion Units in each year since 2018-19.

Leo Docherty: The following table details the number of personnel who have not completed Operational Conversion Unit (OCU) flying conversion courses, across all the OCUs in each year. 2018-19 - Nil2019-20 - Nil2020-21 - Nil2021-22 - One2022-23 - Three2023-24 - Nil  Personnel who do not complete an OCU flying conversion course for a specific frontline aircraft type are considered for re-streaming of their career path. They may subsequently successfully complete another OCU conversion course for a different aircraft type or be re-streamed into wider ground-based RAF Profession.

Air Force: Training

Nick Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 16 April 2024 to Question 20584 on Air Force: Training, for what reason fewer pilots successfully completed Phase 2 Military Flying Training in the training years (a) 2022-23 and (b) 2023-24; and what assessment he has made of the potential impact of that reduction in numbers on the UK’s preparedness for military conflict.

Leo Docherty: The number of Royal Air Force (RAF) pilots who successfully completed Phase 2 Military Flying Training in training years 2022-23 and 2023-24 was in line with requirement. There is no impact on the UK’s preparedness for military conflict; the UK continues to train the required number of RAF pilots, on time, to world-leading standards.

Air Force: Training

Nick Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 16 April 2024 to Question 20584 on Air Force: Training, what the average cost was of training a Royal Air Force pilot to Phase 2 Military Flying Training in the each of the training years between 2018-19 and 2023-24.

Leo Docherty: The average cost of flying training per trainee is not currently compiled on an annual basis. The last time in-depth cost modelling conducted was in Financial Year 2021-22. The average cost of flying training for Royal Air Force (RAF) pilots in Financial Year 2021-22 was as follows: RAF Fast Jet: £5,362,085RAF Multi Engine: £ 953,817RAF Rotary Wing: £1,041,843 The above figures include pay, support costs and costs within the UK Military Flying Training System (UKMFTS) contract up to the point a trainee pilot commences training on a front line aircraft as part of an Operational Conversion Unit.

Air Force: Training

Nick Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 16 April 2024 to Question 20584 on Air Force: Training, what the target number of Royal Air Force pilots was for successful completion of Phase 2 Military Flying Training in each of the training years between 2018-19 and 2023-24.

Leo Docherty: Between 2018-19 and 2023-24, Phase 2 Military Flying Training pilot output achieved 100% of the training targets to enable Front Line operations. I am withholding the specific information requested as its disclosure would, or would be likely to prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.

Reserve Forces

Mr Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many former members of the regular Army have regular reserve call out liability as of 1 April 2024.

Mr Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many former members of the regular Army have regular reserve recall liability in the event of a national emergency as of 1 April 2024.

Dr Andrew Murrison: As at 1 January 2024 there were 22,676 Army Regular Reservists with recall liability under Section 22 of the Reserve Forces Act (RFA) 96. In addition, there are approximately 55,000 ex-Regular personnel as of March 2024 subject to recall under Section 68 of the RFA 96. Notes/caveats: The number of Army Regular Reservists with a recall liability can only be provided as at 1 January 2024 in line with Published National Statistics.The Army Regular Reserve comprises ex-Regular Army personnel who retain a workforce obligation to be called up for service in times of need.This figure includes the serving component which comprises ex-Regular personnel who have applied to return to Army service on a fixed term Reserve commitment.The second figure comprises of personnel who have completed their military service and retain a liability to be recalled for service in the event of national danger, great emergency or an actual or suspected attack on the UK.This figure is a single Service estimate based on management information which is not gathered for statistical purposes or subject to the same level of scrutiny as official statistics produced by Defence Statistics. The data as of March 2024 is the latest available.The c55,000 includes ex-Regular Officers who retain a recall liability in perpetuity.

Treasury

Departmental Expenditure Limits

Mr Ben Wallace: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, by how much (a) Resource Departmental Expenditure Limits and (b) Capital Departmental Expenditure Limits will be reduced following the cancellation of the northern leg of HS2 in each affected Department; and if he will publish in which Departments these savings will be made.

Laura Trott: The government has committed to re-invest every penny that is saved from the cancelled phases of HS2 into alternative transport projects through Network North.This means that every penny of the £19.8 billion committed to the Northern leg of HS2 will be reinvested in the North; every penny of the £9.6 billion committed to the Midlands leg will be reinvested in the Midlands; and the full £6.5 billion saved through our rescoped approach at Euston will be spread across every other region in the country.Departmental Expenditure Limits in 2024-25 are published at the relevant Estimates in the usual way. Departmental budgets beyond 2024-25 will be set as part of the next Spending Review.

Treasury: ICT

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the policy paper entitled Transforming for a digital future: 2022 to 2025 roadmap for digital and data, updated on 29 February 2024, what steps his Department has taken to mitigate the risks of red-rated legacy IT systems.

Gareth Davies: I refer the hon Member to the answer given on 29 November 23 to PQ UIN 3658.

Department for Science, Innovation and Technology

Voice Over Internet Protocol: Crime

Helen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether she has had recent discussions with the Secretary of State for the Home Department on taking steps to help protect vulnerable people from crime during the digital switchover of telephony services.

Helen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, is she will hold discussions with the Local Government Association to help define the role of a digital champion in supporting (a) the digitisation of council services, (b) the digital switchover and (c) the 2G/3G switch off.

Julia Lopez: DSIT is coordinating the cross-government response to the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) switchover. DSIT is engaging closely with counterparts in the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) as well as the Local Government Association (LGA). DSIT is a member of the LGA’s working group which focuses on supporting local authorities with the PSTN migration, as well as the 2G/3G switch-off. DSIT supported the LGA in publishing a guidance note for councils on how to raise awareness among residents, and seek to prevent and disrupt anyone from using the digital switchover as a means to advance criminal activity. The guidance can be found at the following address: https://www.local.gov.uk/our-support/cyber-digital-and-technology/digital-switchover/digital-phone-switchover/digital-phone DSIT also works closely with the Home Office, as the department responsible for crime policy, as well as Ofcom - the independent telecoms regulator - on a range of issues to tackle telephone enabled fraud and bring criminals to justice. DLUHC’s Local Digital team is dedicated to helping councils digitise and transform their services so that they are modern and resilient. DLUHC’s “Future Councils” pilot programme has recently published a report identifying the most common challenges to digital transformation and is building on its findings. Ofcom wrote to local government organisations on 17 January 2024 to reiterate the importance of ensuring that councils are prepared for any changes that may impact on the delivery of services when 3G and then 2G is switched off. The letter can be found via the following link:https://www.ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0022/275521/letter-local-gov-3g-switch-off.pdf The Government has published information on the role of Digital Champions within the Digital Connectivity Portal. The Portal is an extensive online resource providing best practice guidance helping local authorities to facilitate digital infrastructure deployment.https://www.gov.uk/guidance/digital-strategy-and-leadership#digital-champion

Voice Over Internet Protocol

Sir Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to her Department's publication entitled Public Switched Telephone Network charter, published on 18 December 2023, what steps her Department has taken to create a shared definition of vulnerable customer groups.

Sir Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, with reference to her Department's publication entitled Public Switched Telephone Network charter, published on 18 December 2023, when she plans to publish a definition of vulnerable customer groups.

Julia Lopez: The Department is in discussions with stakeholders across Government and industry to arrive at a standard definition of vulnerability specific to the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) migration. This will help identify customers that may be vulnerable during the migration, whether through health or personal circumstances, so that they can be better protected. While agreeing a definition is a priority, it is critical that the final definition is robust and properly tested. The Department is working at pace to do so and will publish a definition as soon as possible.

Telemedicine: Voice Over Internet Protocol

Sir Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether her Department has made an estimate of the number of households with telecare devices still to transition from the public switched telephone network to the Digital Voice service.

Julia Lopez: According to data from the Telecare Services Association (TSA) and Farrpoint, a digital consultancy, there are between 1.7 and 2 million telecare users in the UK; given that devices are readily available to purchase privately, we cannot provide an exact figure. Of these, the TSA estimates that c.500,000 devices are compatible with digital phone lines. However, some analogue telecare devices may also work on digital networks. DSIT has been working with the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) and the telecare industry to raise awareness of the migration and to encourage the testing of analogue devices on digital phone lines. BT and other providers have also set up test labs for telecare suppliers or telecare service providers to test their equipment.

Voice Over Internet Protocol: Local Government

Sir Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what discussions she has had with local authorities on the switching off of the public switched telephone network.

Sir Chris Bryant: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if she will provide additional resources to local authorities to effectively manage the switching off of the public switched telephone network.

Julia Lopez: DSIT is coordinating the cross-government response to the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) switchover. Government is taking the risks associated with this switchover very seriously and our primary objective is to ensure vulnerable people are protected throughout this necessary transition. DSIT is engaging closely with counterparts in the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC) and the Local Government Association (LGA). DSIT is a member of the LGA’s working group which focuses on the switchover. DSIT will be submitting specific guidance to Local Authorities on matters related to the migration and is working to assess the impact that the PSTN switchover may have on Local Authorities. BT Group announced its plans to switch off the PSTN in 2017, and many affected organisations, including some Local Authorities, have taken the opportunity to prepare for the transition since then. Upgrading devices to digitally compatible products will ensure they are compatible with a superior and more secure underlying infrastructure, future-proofing them for years ahead.

Telecommunications: Infrastructure

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, if she will bring forward legislative proposals to require broadband companies to gain the consent of (a) the local authority and (b) residents before erecting telephone poles.

Julia Lopez: Telegraph poles play an important role in delivering efficient and cost-effective coverage and connectivity to communities, particularly in hard to reach areas without costly and disruptive roadworks, or where existing infrastructure cannot be used. Permitted development rights allow telegraph poles and lines to be deployed without requiring case-by-case approval from the local planning authority, and we have no plans to introduce legislation to change permitted development rights for telegraph poles. However, we are aware of the concerns that residents in some parts of the country have about the deployment of telegraph poles. There are existing measures to minimise pole deployment and avoid inappropriate siting, and we are also taking further action to respond to those concerns. For example, the Electronic Communications Code (Conditions and Restrictions) Regulations 2003 (“the 2003 Regulations”) set out the legal requirements operators must adhere to. Already, Local Planning Authorities should be notified 28 days before poles are installed in many circumstances as set out in the 2003 Regulations, and can impose conditions on this installation which operators must adhere to provided that the conditions are reasonable. The 2003 regulations also state that operators should share infrastructure where practicable. There is also a Code of Practice in place, which provides guidance on ways operators can ensure new installations are placed appropriately, and that local authorities and communities are to be engaged with regarding proposed installations. Ofcom can take enforcement action in respect of breaches of the restrictions and conditions contained in the 2003 regulations. Ofcom have also stated that they would investigate any cases where poles are sited in a way which is not consistent with the requirements and guidelines in place – including where they block residents’ drives or where operators systematically fail to engage with local planning authorities’ suggestions. We encourage Local Planning Authorities to make complaints to Ofcom if they feel these criteria apply. I recently met with Melanie Dawes, CEO of Ofcom, to discuss this, and to explore ways DSIT and Ofcom can work together to raise awareness of statutory roles and responsibilities and ensure better compliance. I also wrote to all fixed line operators on 14 March, setting out the government’s concerns and emphasising the importance of infrastructure sharing. Specifically, I have asked them to do everything possible to share existing telegraph poles before installing new ones. Separately, DSIT is considering how revisions to the Cabinet Siting and Pole Siting Code of Practice might be delivered to promote better working practices. I met interested MPs on Monday 25 March 2024, and I remain keen to hear and understand the concerns shared by MPs and their constituents. I am also meeting fixed-line operators to discuss these concerns.

Project Gigabit: Procurement

Liz Twist: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, for what reason the type B procurement of Lot 4 of Project Gigabit was not successful.

Liz Twist: To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, whether she has made an assessment of the economic impact of delays in the Project Gigabit Lot 4 procurement process on households in the North East of England.

Julia Lopez: The supplier that was awarded the Project Gigabit contract for the North East (Lot 4) was unable to proceed after failing to secure the funding it required. To maintain the delivery of gigabit coverage to premises in the North East, we have worked with suppliers to bring forward additional projects under the Gigabit Broadband Voucher Scheme. The remaining premises will be included in a call-off under our cross-regional framework, which we aim to have in place this summer. We will press the successful supplier to begin to build premises in the North East as soon as possible to minimise any delay. Consequently, the economic impacts of this change in approach will be kept as low as possible.